iiiliLjiMi
THE ART OF THE
UIFIZI- ENLACE AND
THE FLORENCE ACADEMY
CHARLES C HE^YU
CORNELL
UNIVERSITY
COLLEGE OF
ARCHITECTURE
LIBRARY
N 2540.H6r"""""'"">"-"'"^''
The art of the Uffizi palace and the Flo
3 1924 020 700 641
Cornell University
Library
The original of tiiis book is in
tine Cornell University Library.
There are no known copyright restrictions in
the United States on the use of the text.
http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924020700641
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XTbe art of tbe "Clffiai ©alace ana
■\ tbe jFlorence academic r
|3 BY CHARLES C. HEYL \
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3 L. C. PAGE & COMPANY J
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1
ANDREA DEL SARTO. — THE MADONNA OF THE HARPIES
(See page 240)
|I)e i^rt of t^t e^
Uf&ii Palace e^
*^ anir tfje e^
;fflorenee ^eairemg *^
Together with that of the Minor Mu-
seums of Florence, with explanatory and
appreciative comment on the notable
works therein preserved, and their history
and significance
By - ?"*
Charles C. Heyl
Illustrated
Boston
C. Page & Company
MDCCCCXII
Copyright, igta.
By L. C. Page & Coufant.
(incoxposatbd)
All rights reserved
CItiA
First Impression, October, 1912
THE COLONIAL PRESS
C. H. SIMONDS A CO., BOSTON, U. S. A.
TO MY WIFE
Jotewotb
Amid the distresses and the pettinesses of a day,
in the quest for sympathy, for inspiration, or just
for quiet pleasure, one easily learns to turn natu-
rally to those splendid structures, and beautiful
sculptures, and dear old pictures that so completely
express the wonderful character and quality of the
great Golden Age of the Renaissance in Italy.
Constant and undying are the true friendships
that one may form with the great works of art
that have stood the test of time, and with the im-
mortal artists who created them.
For some students, chiefly the artists and the
connoisseurs, the technique of a work is the more
interesting study ; — the invention, the composition,
the design, the medium, the method, the manner,
the finish. For others, mostly the plain, simple
lovers of art, it is the great, eternal, living soul
of the thing that is the more fascinating.
It is for the latter, in particular, that this book
is planned. It deals with some of the great works
vi jForewoto
of art in Florence, touching sympathetically upon
suoh elements in the intellectual intent and content
of the productions as may afford the keenest en-
joyment, coupled with the most complete under-
standing and appreciation.
In all of the comment herein set down, the temp-
tation to dwell too much upon the technicalities of
art has been studiously avoided; but the desire to
revel in the real meaning and beauty of it has not
been restrained. This is the apology, if any be
needed, for the frequent introduction of many a
detailed stor-y drawn from the legends of the per-
sonages of sacred art, or from the lives of the
artists.
The work is begun with a story of surpassing,
human interest, presented as a vivid and striking
introductory picture of the life, and the times, and
the thought of that great period in history in which
art was re-conceived and born anew ; for one must
breathe very deeply of the real atmosphere of that
marvellous period in order to be able fully to com-
prehend and appreciate the moods and sentiments
of its art.
No consideration has been given to the treasures
of the Pitti Palace, as the contents of that gallery
are the subject of an earlier volume in this series.
Charles C. Heyl.
Contents
i^HAPTER PAGE
Foreword . v
I. The Genesis of the Renaissance: The
First Religious Revival . . . i
II. The Academy and the David of
Michelangelo 13
III. The Tuscano - Byzantine Paintings . 25
IV. The Gothic Pioneers: Cimabue, Gi-
otto, and Gaddi 38
V. The Influence of the Cloister: Lo-
renzo Monaco, Angelico, and Fa-
BRIANO 60
VI. The Spirit of the Quattrocento:
Masaccio, Lippi, and Botticelli . 78
VII. Ghirlandajo, Verrocchio, and Bar-
tolommeo 99
VIII. Signorelli, Perugino, and Del Sarto 115
IX. The Museum of San Marco: The
Frescoes of Fra Angelico . . . 128
X. The History of the Uffizi Gallery . 146
XI. The Uffizi Gallery: The East Corri-
dor iSS
XII. The Uffizi Gallery: The Room of
Lorenzo Monaco 174
XIII. The Uffizi Gallery: The Room of
Botticelli 184
vii
VIU
Contents
CHAPTER PAGE
XIV. The Uitizi Gallery: The Room of
Leonardo 201
XV. The Uffizi Gallery: The Room of
Michelangelo 208
XVl. The Uffizi Gallery: The Rooms of
THE Tuscan School . . . .219
XVII. The Uffizi Gallery: The Tribuna . 248
XVIII. The Uffizi Gallery: The Room of
the Venetian School . . . . :269
XIX. The Uffizi Gallery: Various Italian
AND Foreign Paintings . . .288
XX. The Uffizi Gallery: The Sculptures 309
XXI. The Bargello and the Cathedral
Museum 320
Bibliography 333
The Important Works, of Art Re-
ferred TO IN This Book . . . 335
List of Artists Mentioned in the Book
with Reference to Their Works . 349
General Index . , . . . . 361
Xtst of irilu6tratton6
— * —
PAQB
Andrea del Sarto. — The Madonna of the Harpies (see
page 240) Frontispiece
Plan of the Academy Gallery, Florence . . . . 12
Michelangelo. — David 20
Italo - Byzantine School. — Saint Mary Magdalen . 28
CruABtiE. — The Madonna Enthroned. — Giotto. — The Ma-
donna Enthroned 44
Taddeo Gaddi. — Scenes from the Life of Saint Francis . 56
Don Lorenzo Monaco. — The Annunciation with Saints . 62
Fra Angelico. — The Descent from the Cross ... 68
Gentile da FaBriano. — The Adoration of the Magi . . 72
Fra Filippo Lippi. — The Coronation of the Virgin . . 84
Botticelli. — Allegory of Spring (Primavera) ... 88
Botticelli. — Madonna and Child Enthroned with Saints
and Angels 94
Ghirlandajo. — The Adoration of the Shepherds . . . 102
Verrocchio. — The Baptism of Christ 106
Perugino. — The Assumption of the Virgin . . . .120
Andrea del Sarto. — Four Saints 126
Fra Angelico. — The Crucifixion 138
Fra Angelico. — The Annunciation 142
Plan or the Ufeizi Gallery, Florence . . . . iSS
The East Corridor, Looking South 156
SmoNE Martini and Lippo Memmi. — The Annunciation
with Saints 166
Don Lorenzo Monaco. — The Coronation of the Virgin . 174
Fra Angelico. — Detail of the Tabernacle of the Arte dei
Linaiuoli ^78
Fra Angeuco. — The Coronation of the Virgin . . . 180
ix
X Xiat of f llustrations
PAQZ
Botticelli. — Judith with the Head of Holofemes . . i88
Botticelli. — The Adoration of the Magi .... 190
Botticelli. — The Madonna of the Magnificat . . . 192
Botticelli. — The Birth of Venus 195
Vereocchio. — The Annunciation 204
Fra Filippo Lippi. — The Madonna and Angels . . . 210
Michelangelo. — The Doni Madonna 216
FiLippiNO Lippi. — Madonna and Saints 226
Albertinelli. — The Visitation 229
SoDOMA. — Saint Sebastian 238
The Teibuna op the Uitizi Gallery 248
Raphael. — The Madonna of the Goldfinch .... 252
Titian. — Reclining Venus 260
Correggio. — Madonna adoring the Child .... 264
D"rer. — The Adoration of the Magi 267
Mantegna. — Triptych '271
Titian. — Madonna and Child with Saint John and Saint
Anthony Abbot 277
Titian. — Flora 278
Mantegna. — The Madonna of the Quarries .... 288
Hugo van der Goes. — Altar-piece of the Portinari Family 300
Rubens. — Portrait of the Artist 307
Venus de' Medici 312
NiOBE AND Her Youngest Daughter 318
Donatello. — Saint George 324
Donatello. — Cantoria from the Cathedral. — Lucca della
RoBBiA. — Cantoria from the Cathedral .... 329
W^t lart of ti}t
^nti tj)e jRorence 9icatiem?
CHAPTER I
THE GENESIS OF THE RENAISSANCE: THE FIRST
RELIGIOUS REVIVAL
It was the evening of a Good Friday, in the
early period of the dawn of the new millennium,
just after the world had passed that first great mile-
stone in Christian history, the year of our Lord one
thousand.
An armed knight, accompanied by a few serv-
ants, made his way up the steep path ascending the
western slope of the Monte alle Croci, just below
the famous, old Church of San Miniato that over-
looks the city of Florence.
Although the path was an ancient and venerated
Via Crucis, lined with stations and crosses, and
although the day was the sacred anniversary of
that on which the world's Great Sacrifice was made.
2 Ube art of tbe lUtRsi palace
it was with no pious thoughts that the party climbed
the hill. Their faces were hard and they toiled
steadily up the steep ascent in silence.
The leader was quite a young man, hardly hav-
ing passed his eighteenth year, but his impressive
stature and evident strength, together with the se-
rious and set expression in his face, made him seem
much older. His name was Giovanni Gualberto.
He was a son of Gualberto dei Visdomini, head of
one branch of a noble family numbered among the
ancient protectors of the bishopric of Florence.
It chanced, as was neither uncommon nor remark-
able in those days, that Gualberto and his im-
mediate family were at feud with another branch
of the same house. The vendetta had originated
in a petty quarrel and its latest victim was the
young knight's brother Ugo, whom he greatly
loved. In accordance with the vengeful custom
of the time, it became Gualberto's formal duty to
seek the life of his brother's murderer. Urged on
by the fury of his father and the tears of his mother,
as well as by his own rage and grief, Gualberto
was ever on the watch for his enemy and ever
went armed and accompanied by trusty servants.
Upon the evening of which we write, Gualberto
was returning from Florence to tHe country villa
of his father, and chose the steep path over the
Hill of the Crosses. Suddenly, at a turn of the
. Zbc ©enesis of tbe IRenaissance 3
way, he oame face to face with the one whose life he
sought. The man was alone and, strange to say,
unarmed. Each recognized the other at once and,
like a flash, Gualberto was at his enemy's throat
with drawn steel, the servants also springing to
assist their master. Escape for the poor wretch
seemed impossible. A furious wave of vengeful
satisfaction swept over Gualberto and he paused a
moment to gloat over his victim, glaring silently
into the terrified eyes and pressing the cold steel
against the throbbing throat. To Gualberto it
seemed, indeed, as if his enemy bad been placed in
his hands by God. Who shall say truly that it was
not so? The momentary pause was fateful and
fraught with the greatest consequences. Ugo's
murderer sank to his knees on the rough stones of
the path, and throwing out his arms in the form of
the Holy Cross, begged his captor to spare his life,
in remembrance of the Saviour who had on that day
•suffered and died for them both. Gualberto was
still a young man and his hands had not yet been
stained with blood. While he remained outwardly
unmoved, he was beginning a terrible mental
struggle with himself. There came into his mind
a vivid picture of the Crucifixion. Even while the
Roman executioners were driving in the cruel nails,
Christ had prayed to His Father to forgive them.
Should Giovanni Gualberto do less ? It was now
4 Ube art of tbc mffi3i IPalace
his turn to pray. Should he forgive this murderer
kneeling at his feet? Gualberto's whole body
trembled with the intensity of his inner conflict.
His sufferings were less than those of the Christ
and should he be less forgiving? His weapon
dropped. Breathing a prayer for strength, he
raised the suppliant to his feet and embraced him,
saying, " I give you not your life only, but my love
too for ever. Pray for me that God may pardon
my sin." The other was speechless with emotion.
Then they parted, and each went his way in silence,
Gualberto's servants full of wonder and astonish-
ment at the strange thing that they had witnessed.
Presently the party came in sight of the monas-
tery of San Miniato. Bidding the servants go on
to his father's house, Gualberto turned in to the
church and knelt before the great crucifix over the
altar, offering a fervent prayer to God for forgive-
ness for his sinful passion. As he prayed, he raised
his eyes and looked into the face of the image of
the Crucified and it seemed to him that the head
slowly inclined toward him in token of acceptance
of his penitence. At the miracle, Gualberto burst
into tears, and, when the emotion had passed, there
came into his mind and heart a hitherto unknown
peace. He rose to his feet and went out to the
platform in front of the church, whence he could
gaze on that wonderful panorama of the city,
XEbe Genesis ot tbe IRenatssance s
bathed in a soft, warm haze, under the after-glow
of the sunset. There and then, his whole subse-
quent course of Hfe was decided. The spirit of re-
venge was gone, and with it had gone all worldly
'ambition. Resolutely he turned to the monastery,
seeking out the venerable abbot, and proposing to
join himself to the followers of the great Saint
Benedict and become a novice under their Rule,
craving their comradeship and support. When his
father heard of it, great was his astonishment and
anger, and he hurried to the monastery and en-
deavoured by argument and threat to dissuade the
youth from his purpose. But Gualberto's resolve
was firmly taken, and then, under the very eyes of
his father, he cut his hair and donned the Benedic-
tine habit. So his father yielded, and left him to
live his new life as he would.
Gladly received by the monks, Gualberto passed
(his novitiate among them and became a member
of the Order of Saint Benedict. Remaining at San
Miniato for about four years, he won the esteem
and respect of all with whom he came into contact.
Then the old abbot died, and the monks, with one
accord, desired Gualberto to succeed him. But the
young monk could not be persuaded to accept the
office. Already there had crept into the hfe of the
old institution many of those abuses and irregulari-
ties of which the spirit of Saint Benedict is made
6 UBe art ot tbe "Clffist palace
to complain so bitterly, three centuries later, in
Dante's " Paradiso." The imprisonment and even
the murder of those who endeavoured to correct
such abuses was then by no means unknown.
Gualberto was not inclined to attempt what was
well nigh impossible. With a single companion
only, he took his leave of San Miniato, journeying
to that solitary glen among the higher Apennines,
the " hermit's seat " of Gamaldoli, where, only a
few years before, in a similar revulsion of feeling,
Romualdo of Ravenna had founded the reformed
Benedictine congregation of the Camaldolesi, ob-
serving the strictest monastic rule. Here Gualberto
hoped to find the closer solitude that his soul craved.
He was kindly received by Romualdo, but not even
in Gamaldoli was there found exactly what he
sought. Exchanging vows of eternal friendship
with Romualdo, Gualberto left Gamaldoli, taking
his way across the beautiful valley known as the
Gasentino. Goming at last to a quiet " shady
vale," a score of miles from Florence, he obtained
a tract of land from a neighbouring abbey, and
there, in company with two other pious anchorites,
he built a simple hermitage and founded a new
monastery, — Vallombrosa.
It was not long before the notable sanctity of
Giovanni Gualberto had attracted to the beautiful
spot many another one in search of peace and soli-
TTbe aenesfs of tbe iRenaissance 7
tude, each establishing there his little dwelling and
placing himself under Gualberto's direction. Soon
it became necessary for the leader to provide for
some order in the growing community, and he gave
them the ancient Rule of Saint Benedict, particu-
larly revising the original obligation to labour with
the hands, a command that then had been more
honoured in the breach than in the observance for
some two centuries past. New obligations were
also added to the old Rule and thus the Vallora-
brosan Order came into being in the year 1015.
A fair acquaintance with the spirit and the
stories of most of the great religious orders of the
middle ages is indispensable to a complete under-
standing and appreciation of much of the art with
which this volume deals, and such a knowledge adds
much valuable colour to one's mental picture of
the times that produced the greatest masters in
art.
In the reign of Charlemagne, throughout hils
imperial dominion, no Order other than that of
Saint Benedict had anything more than a mere,
nominal existence. All of the celebrated men who
were in the service of the great emperor were Ben-
edictines. Even in England, down to the twelfth
century, almost every leading statesman and scholar
belonged to the same Order. During the ninth and
the tenth centuries, however, the influence and su-
8 Ube Hct ot tbe lat&si palace
periority of the Benedictines had declined sadly,
but to their credit must it be said that through it
all they succeeded in keeping alight the lamp of
learning and in perpetuating a certain kind of life-
less and formal ecclesiastical art. Gradually, the
more conscientious spirits among the monks had
withdrawn from the monasteries, disgusted with the
abuses and evasions of their fellows, and had be-
taken themselves to places removed from the popu-
lous haunts of men, there to live in solitude and
seclusion. During the last centuries of the first
millennium, the pious hermit was a prominent figure
in the interesting life of the period and in its stories
and legends.
With the closing of the ninth century began
" the misery of Europe." Marauding hordes from
the east and from the north swept over the western
countries. In Italy, what the Saracen left the
Hungarian gleaned. As the tenth century drew to
a close, civilization held its breath. Throughout
Christendom the end of the world was confidently
expected in the year looo. Never in history has
there been a period of greater general stagnation
of active and progressive interests than that which
immediately preceded that important year.
The great year came, — and went. Nothing had
happened. People looked at one another. The
tide of progress remained at ebb. Surely some
tEbe ©enests ot tbe iRenaissance 9
mistake had been made. Another year passed
quietly, — and still another. Yes, there must have
been a great mistake ! Then the tide came back in
a rising wave, fascinating and powerful, that
swept everything before it. As Raoul Glaber, the
Gallic Monk of Cluny, quaintly puts it in his con-
temporary history, in the year 1003 " it was as
thoug'h the world, startled from its death-sleep, had
arisen and tossed aside the worn-out garments of
ancient time, determined to apparel itself anew in
a white robe of churches." Especially in Gaul and
in Italy did men vie with one another in making
great gifts to the cause of the church and in raising
superb structures to the glory of God. The reac-
tion was general. Reformation was in the air. The
whole habit of men's thoughts was beginning to
change. It was precisely this spirit that impelled
Giovanni Gualberto to his unprecedented action
upon the Hill of the Crosses on that fateful Good
Friday evening. It was the same spirit that led Ro-
mualdo, a few years later, to found the first re-
formed Benedictine Order in Italy, that of the
Camaldolesi. Again it was the same spirit that
led Gualberto to Vallombrosa. And it was still
the same spirit that eventually brought into the
Vallombrosan monasteries many of the greatest
ecclesiastics and scholars of the day, making the
Order thus recruited one of the most potent and
10 Ube Hrt of tbe TSitRsi ipalace
successful influences for progress and for good
during the next three centuries of Florentine his-
tory. The library of the parent monastery' at Val-
lombrosa soon became one of the finest in Italy and
remained so until 1809, when the rapacity of the
French despoiled it of its choicest books and manu-
scripts. Vallombrosa claims among its monks the
greatest musician of his time, Guido d'Arezzo,
known as Fra Guittone, the inventor of the prin-
ciple upon which the modern system of musical
notation is based.
Gnalberto died in 1073, being formally enrolled
among the saints one hundred and twenty years
later. During the life of the founder, no less than
a dozen communities of his Order had grown up
around the parent one. Perhaps the most famous
of these younger houses was that of the now ruin-
ous monastery of San Salvi, near Florence, where
Andrea del Sarto's celebrated fresco of the Last
Supper is still preserved. In the city of Florence,
the well-known Church of the Trinita belongs to the
Order, and in this church, over the high altar, is still
kept the miraculous crucifix from the Church of San
Miniato, before which the founder of the Order
had prayed so fervently on that memorable evening
after he had forgiven his brother's murderer.
Numerous pictures important in the history of
Florentine art were painted for or inspired by the
XTbe ©enesis of tbe "Renaissance n
monks of the Vallombrosan Order. For the most
part, these precious pictures were great altar-pieces,
painted for certain places. Upon the suppression
of the monasteries and churches in modern times,
many of those pictures that had not previously been
destroyed or appropriated by Italy's ruthless in-
vaders, were rudely abstracted from their beautiful
settings, only to be ranged side by side, in a glaring
light, upon the walls of academies and galleries,
like so many pressed flowers in a botanist's collec-
tion. There, with a few notable exceptions, we
find them to-day. Fortunately, we must still go to
the monasteries and churches to view the great
frescoes, in the places for which their painters de-
signed them, still bathed in something of their orig-
inal atmosphere and bearing their evidence to the
power of the great religious spirit that, when all is
said, is recognized as the dominant impulse in the
re-awakening of art.
With various other notable religious movements
wihose influence on art was great we shall deal else-
where in our story. Suffice it here to say, briefly,
that the Orders of Camaldoli and Vallombrosa were
by no means the only ones of importance among
the reformed Benedictines in Italy. Both the Car-
thusians and the Cistercians figure prominently at
a later period. During the succeeding centuries,
also, the two powerful Mendicant Orders were
12
Ubc Hrt ot tbe Xflffisi palace
founded by Francis of Assisi and Dominick the
Spaniard, — " dividing the world between them."
But to no single influence is Florentine painting
more deeply indebted for its revivification than to
that which was exerted in Tuscany during the
twelfth and thirteenth centuries by the disciples
and followers of that remarkable character, San
Giovanni Gualberto.
PLAN OF THE ACADEMY GALLERY, FLORENCE
6
7
6
4 3 5
1 1
! 2 "i
o. P
v
O O
1
>
>
\
1
II
1 — Entrance Vestibule
2 — Tribuna of the David
3 — Room of Perugino
4 — Room of the Primavera
5 — Room of Botticelli
7 — Second Room of the Tuscan Mas-
ters
8 — Third Room of the Tuscan Masters
9 — First Room of Fra Angelico
lo — Second Room of Fra Angelico
6 — First Room of the Tuscan Masters x i — Room of the Early Tuscan Maste»
CHAPTER II
THE ACADEMY AND THE DAVID OF MICHELANGELO
In the spring of the year 1274, the immortal poet
Dante, then a serious-minded boy in his tenth year,
accompanied 'his father to a May Festival given by
one of the principal citizens of Florence, a certain
Folco Portinari. It was at this feast that the young
Dante first met bis " glorious Lady, . . . even she
who was called Beatrice by many who knew not
wherefore," as says the poet himself, referring to
the meaning of the name : " She who confers bless-
ing." " This youngest of the angels " was then only
a child of eight. Before she had passed her nine-
teenth year, the Portinari family did indeed confer
a great blessing upon the people. In 1285 the
father of the gentle lady established the hospital
that is now the largest and oldest in the city, that of
Santa Maria Nuova, in the Via Bufalini. The
foundation of this beneficent institution is said to
have been suggested to Portinari by one of his
servants, Monna Tessa, who, together with "the
gentle Beatrice," was already actively engaged in
13
14 TTbe Hct ot tbe mmsi palace
the charitable work of caring for the sick among
the poor. The success of the new institution led to
the establishment of others. During the following
century the Hospital of San Matteo was founded,
in the Via Ricasoli, when a small building was pro-
vided for it near the Piazza di San Marco. In 1783
the Florentine Grand-Duke Pietro Leopoldo, desir-
ing a location for an Academy of the Fine Arts, re-
moved the Hospital of San Matteo from its home,
and incorporated the institution with the greater
one of Santa Maria Nuova. The vacated struc-
ture was remodelled, and in the new quarters thus
provided were brought together all the various
schools of design then existing in the city. Thus
was established the present Accademia delle Belle
Arti.
At the time of its organization the new Academy
was furnished with a small collection of old paint-
ings by celebrated artists. During subsequent
years this collection was frequently enriched by the
addition of pictures from the suppressed churches
and convents. The present collection, officially
known as the Royal Gallery of Ancient and Modern
Art, thus contains much that is of great interest to
the student of Italian painting from the thirteenth
to the sixteenth century. The gallery is particu-
larly rich in works by the Tuscan artists of the
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. One who de-
Ube HcaOemT? is
sires intelligently to appreciate Florentine painting
should visit the Academy Gallery before going to
either of the greater galleries in the palaces of the
Uffizi and the Pitti.
Upon entering the Academy building, and pass-
ing through the vestibule into the gallery proper,
one sees a striking vista opening down a long hall
hung with fine Flemish tapestry. At the far end
is the well lighted Cupola Saloon, where stands
Michelangelo's celebrated statue of David, one of
the finest masterpieces of sculpture in the world.
To pass by this magnificent figure, postponing
its consideration for slavish, chronological reasons,
might be commendable and satisfying to the sys-
tematic critic, but it would require the exercise of
a greater degree of self-control than is ordinarily
possessed by the enthusiastic art-lover. We yield
to the temptation to digress for a discussion of this
splendid work of art.
It was in the early fall of the year 1501 that the
colossal figure was begun. The great artist had
recently returned to Florence from his second visit
to Rome and his attention was directed to a large
clumsily-hewn block of fine marble that stood, at
the time, in the work-shop of the Operai del Duomo,
or Board of Works of the Cathedral. The great
block, something over nine feet in height, cut from
the ancient quarries at Carrara a long time before.
i6 Zbc art of tbe mm3i IPalace
had been intended for the making of a gigantic
figure of a prophet. The sculptor who had under-
taken the work was a certain " Master Agostino of
Florence," who had formerly successfully carved
another large figure for the Cathedral. He had
evidently determined that this second one should be
produced with some saving of labour and expense
and had directed the figure to be roughly blocked
out at the quarry, in order to facilitate transporta-
tion. But the work was so badly done that when
the block arrived in Florence, neither Master Agos-
tino nor any other sculptor of his day was able to
do anything with it. The awkward, 'half-formed
figure, popularly called II Gigante, The Giant, stood
for many years in the work-shop of the Operai.
Finally, just as other artists were endeavouring to
gain possession of the block, to cut it up or to add
extra pieces to it and carve therefrom a statue,
Michelangelo arrived and looked it over. The great
artist's power of visualization was one of his most
remarkable gifts. For him there stood imprisoned
in the rough shell not an old prophet but a young
and wonderful boy, and he announced to the Operai
that he could extract the figure from the uncouth
block without the addition of any extra pieces.
Michelangelo was already an artist of established
reputation and the block was offered to him. He
accepted it. A formal contract was drawn up
Ube Hca5ems 17
Calling for the completion of the work in two years,
during which time the artist was to receive a salary
equivalent to about twelve dollars a month, with
such additional recompense as the Operai might
later determine. Michelangelo threw himself into
the work, making at first several small wax models
for the figure, two of which are still preserved in the
Buonarotti house in Florence. Then a roofed en-
closure was erected around the great block of stone,
and in secret, on the thirteenth day of September,
in the year 1501, the great sculptor began his actual
labour. No one was permitted to view the progress
of the work until the end of February, 1502, at
which time the judges of the Operai declared the
half-completed figure excellent and most satisfac-
tory, and decided to award the sculptor an aggre-
gate sum of about eight hundred dollars. At the
expiration of two years from that time the David
was S'hown to be practically finished. So accurately
had the splendid figure been proportioned to the
dimensions of the irregular block that traces of the
original roughness were observed at the base and
on the head.
Then it was that a notable council of Florentine
artists was convened to determine where the
wonderful statue should stand. Many famous
names are recorded among those of the participants
in the interesting discussion, such as Cosimo Ros-
i8 Ube Hrt of tbe Taffi5i Palace
selli, Andrea della Robbia, Lorenzo di Credi,
Sandro Botticelli, Perugino, Leonardo da Vinci
and Filippino Lippi. After prolonged argument
it was finally agreed that the decision should be left
to Michelangelo, and he elected to place the David
upon a pedestal on the steps leading to the main
entrance of the Palazzo Vecchio, where, at the
time, stood Donatello's Judith. The Judith was re-
moved, eventually being set up in the Loggia dei
Lanzi, and the place where it had stood was pre-
pared to receive the new colossus.
The figure was entirely completed by the first
of April, 1504, and the next great problem was to
transport it safely to the place where it was to
stand. More than a month was consumed in con-
structing around the statue a strong crate of heavy
beams and planks. In this cage the giant was im-
prisoned, bound tightly with an elaborate net-work
of stout ropes, and so suspended from the top of
the framework that there might be some slight free-
dom of motion to absorb the shocks to which the
whole contrivance inevitably would be subjected
during its short but remarkable journey. Numer-
ous large rollers were placed beneath the crate,
and dozens of men, with great windlasses, began
to draw it forward, progressively changing the
rollers as the crate advanced.
The first serious obstacle was encountered at the
xrue Bca&emg 19
very door of the work-shop. The opening was
much too small to let the cage pass, and the wall
-had to be broken away. Carefully guarded from
vandalism by day and night, the colossus was
dragged slowly through the streets to the Piazza
della Signoria. In all, four days were required to
complete the transportation. Twenty days more
were needed to place the figure safely on its ped-
estal, but once there, guarding the door of the
Palazzo Vecchio, it stood unprotected and unmoved
for more than three centuries and a half. Once,
during a communal riot in the sixteenth century, a
heavy missile broke the raised left arm, but the
pieces were carefully preserved and subsequently
restored with practically no loss. Despite the vio-
lence to which it was frequently subjected and its
long exposure to weather, the marvellous figure is
substantially as perfect as its maker left it after the
finishing touches were given to it when in position.
It was while engaged upon this final work on the
David that Michelangelo was accosted by his good
friend, Piero Soderini, Gonfaloniere of Florence.
Scafifolding was still around the statue. Soderini
professed some ability as an art critic. " See," said
he, " the nose is too large." Michelangelo silently
climbed the ladder, picking up his chisel and mallet
as he went, and adroitly scraping up a quantity of
marble dust and chips which he concealed in his
20 Ube act of tbe XDimsi ©alace
hand. Holding the chisel under the nose of the
David, but without permitting the tool to touch the
marble, he struck a few sharp, ringing blows, at the
same time allowing the dust and fragments of stone
to drop from his hand. Soderini heard the blows
and saw the chips fall. The sculptor stepped back,
saying " Now look at it." Soderini's reply was
prompt. '"Excellent ! " he exclaimed, " I am much
more pleased with it. You have given life to the
statue! " Michelangelo quietly turned to his work
again. The truly great artist, indeed, never for-
gets the mighty power that may be wielded by a
mere suggestion.
Completed before Michelangelo was thirty years
old, the David is the earliest work in which the
master definitely showed that remarkable quality
of artistic execution that his contemporaries called
his terribilitd. Working only from a model less
than eighteen inches high, the sculptor fiercely at-
tacked the marble, knocking away great pieces of
stone with furious energy and a masterful confi-
dence that seemed well nigh to cause the boyish
figure to spring forth almost palpitating with life
and awe-inspiring power. And what a boy it is!
A stripling, anatomically perfect, whose hands and
head are naturally large in proportion to his stat-
ure, whose hips are narrow and whose chest is
deep, — a typical adolescent form, suggesting the
MICHELANGELO. — DAVID
Ube HcaOems 21
great power of the splendid manhood into which it
is rapidly developing. Resting easily for a moment,
on the retired right foot, the boy turns slightly
toward his foe with scornful scrutiny. Almost
hidden is the simple shepherd's weapon, the trusty
sling. The pendent right hand, with its swollen
veins, grasps a short stick to which one end of a
doubled leathern strap is fastened, the fingers hold-
ing the free end more lightly. Up across the back
the strap passes, falling forward over the left
shoulder, where, in the fold, lies the smooth stone,
loosely held and concealed by the raised left hand.
There is repose in the whole attitude, but it is the
repose of impending strenuous action. Already
the tendons of the right leg are beginning to
tighten. In an instant, like a flash, the right arm
will be raised to a horizontal position and stretched
outward to the full extent of the strap. The stone,
held in the loop beside the neck, will be released,
swiftly describing a wide circle as the sling is
whirled around the head. The body will lunge
forward with the head lowered and the feet wide
apart, and as the fingers of the right hand, at just
the proper moment, release the loose end of the
strap, the deadly missile will leave the sling and
fly toward its mark. The whole action will be
over in an instant of time and the poise of the
body at once recovered. It is characteristic of
22 XEbe Htt of tbe m«3t ©alace
Michelangelo that he chose such a decisive moment
in the action, a state between the potential and the
dynamic, that implies the exercise of an active will.
This is the secret of the great power of the heroic
figure, a power that is always felt by the beholder,
be he who he may, and that always inspires awe,
wonder and admiration. From the standpoint of
powerful suggestion as well as that of technical per-
fection, Michelangelo's David is one of the world's
great masterpieces of sculpture.
In 1873 certain minute cracks were observed be-
ginning to make their appearance in the marble of
the statue, and it was decided to place it under
shelter. Accordingly the Cupola Saloon in which
it now stands was constructed, and the figure was
removed from the steps of the Palazzo Vecchio to
its present position. Subsequently there were
placed here excellent casts and photographs of the
great artist's other important works. This special
collection makes possible an interesting comparative
study of the development of Michelangelo's wonder-
ful genius, but such a study, if at all complete, would
be somewhat beyond the province of the present
volume. We cannot, however, pass on without
noting the fact that we are in the presence of the
work of one of the greatest artists that the world
has ever known. We must also note, further, that
this great man, in addition to being a sculptor
■Qlbe Hca5ems 23
and a painter, was likewise an architect, a military
engineer and a poet, — a versatile genius indeed.
We remember, also, that Michelangelo was a true
Florentine, a genuine Tuscan. We are reminded
of the fact that the land of the Tuscans was in
early times the land of the Etruscans. We recall
that this strange, old nation was in many ways
the most enterprising and remarkable among the
peoples of ancient Italy. Whence the Etruscans
came no one knows, but long before the rise of
Rome and the Latin power, these interesting people
were already highly civilized, with well-developed
agricultural, commercial, civil, military, construct-
ive and artistic interests and talents. Indeed, the
greatest civic progress in early Rome was made
under the Etruscan kings about six centuries before
Christ. In the valley of the Tiber the virile, con-
quering Latin strain engulfed and assimilated that
of the more peaceful and highly civilized Etruscan,
but in the valley of the Arno the old, native strain
of Etruria was more persistent. Particularly was
this true in the upper reaches of the Arno, near its
source in the fertile valley of the Casentino, to
which locality, we remember, both San Romualdo
and San Giovanni Gualberto had felt themselves
so strangely drawn. It was by this sacred valley
that Saint Francis received the stigmata and
founded his powerful Order. It was to this
24 Ubc Hrt of tbe mffisi Palace
secluded valley that Dante retired when his hopes
for Italy were blasted. It was to this same beauti-
ful valley that Michelangelo's parents went from
Florence when the father was made podesta of
Caprese, and it was there, in one of the loveliest
spots in Italy, that the great artist was bom.
CHAPTER III
THE TUSCANO - BYZANTINE PAINTINGS
Tuscany, in all ages, has been the birthplace of
great men. Almost all the great artists and poets
of Italy were Tuscans in whose veins still ran some
of that warm blood which made Etruria of old in-
tellectually and artistically predominant in Italy.
Almost every great thing that was ever done in
Italy owed its accomplishment largely to Tuscan
energy or talent. Tuscany has ever been original
and little influenced by other lands and peoples,
rarely adopting an exotic habit or style, either in
•art or literature, without forcing it to assume a
semblance distinctively native.
When the seat of government of the Roman
Empire was transferred to Constantinople, or
Byzantium, and the Roman art in Italy fell into
decay, it was largely the Byzantine that took its
place. Throughout Southern Italy the only art that
survived the dark ages was of this cold, lifeless,
crystallized type. In Tuscany, the influence of this
devitalized art was undeniably strong, but so was
also the crude, rough, northern influence of the
2S
26 Zbc art of tbe X[im3i palace
Lombard. Stronger than both, however, was the
old Etruscan instinct of originaHty that could never
be entirely effaced. The degraded art of the middle
ages in Florence, therefore, so frequently spoken of
as Byzantine, was really a heterogeneous product,
verging upon the barbaric. Its earliest examples
were great crucifixes, displa3dng the figure of the
Redeemer painted upon a flat wooden cross, such
as that before which San Giovanni Gualbertd
prayed in San Miniato, now preserved in Santa
Trinita. Unfortunately for the student of art, this
particular work is entirely re-painted, and is other-
wise embellished so that its original character is
completely gone. Then, too, it is exposed to view
on Good Friday only. Another old crucifix of
similar type may be seen, however, in the little
museum of the Blgallo, opposite the Baptistery. It
is a cold, gaunt representation of the Saviour on
the cross, crudely drawn and modelled, showing a
head and face of the type usual in the early mosaics,
with wide-open, staring eyes. Down to the thir-
teenth century it was a matter of common belief
that Christ was still alive when His side was pierced
by the spear of Longinus the Roman. After the
miraculous appearance of the heavenly seraph to
Saint Francis and the imprinting of the stigmata
upon his body, the painted type of the Crucified
Redeemer underwent a change in form and expres-
XCbeUuscanosBssarttine iPafntfngs 27
sion approximating that with which we are more
familiar.
During the eleventh century many painters pHed
their art in Florence, of which fact there is ample
documentary record. Their work, however, was
crude and barbaric, of the general type exempli-
fied in the curious representation of Saint Mary
Magdalen, Number 99, that hangs in the First
Room of the Tuscan Masters in the Academy
Gallery. It is difficult to assign even an approxi-
mate date to this work, although it may possibly
have been painted as early as the twelfth century.
It was originally an altar-piece in the Santissima
Annunziata, in Florence, and is one of the oldest as
well as one of the most typical pictures of its kind
that have been preserved in the Florentine galleries.
In view of its character, it is worthy of a brief
study.
In this picture we see a prodigiously tall,
haggard, unlovely figure, all unclothed, but com-
pletely covered with luxuriant masses of brown hair
that falls in long waves to the feet. The Magdalen ,
here appears as the patroness of repentant sinners.
Around her, arranged in a manner quite habitual
in the very old altar-pieces, are eight small, rect-
angular compartments in which are displayed vari-
ous scenes from her life. We readily guess that
this picture was intended to teach a lesson. That
28 xcbe art ot tbe mffi3t palace
has been the excuse for the existence of many a
painting both in ancient and modern times. Can
one read the lesson? If so, perhaps the picture
is not so bad as it looks. We must not fail to
realize that our criticism of an old painting should
be tempered with some of the same delight that
is ours when we listen to the prattle of childhood.
The first, struggling, almost incoherent efforts
at speech in our children are those which charm us
most, and which we strive hardest to interpret.
With the ancient painters, the lack of technical
ability did not prove an insurmountable barrier to
expression. There is the soul of manhood and
womanhood and divinity in their works. Replace
this old picture within the rich frame of some
sacred altar in some dim chapel, weirdly illuminated
by the soft light of a few candles. Come as a
penitent and kneel before this grim and towering
figure. Decipher the quaintly divided inscription
upon the long scroll that she holds in her hands:
NE DESP..
ETIS
VOS QUI
PECCARE
SOLETIS
EXEMPLO
QUE MEO
VOS REPA
RATE DEO
ITALO - BYZANTINE SCHOOL. — SAINT MARY MAGDALEN
U\3C Uuscano«3B83antine paintings 29
The Latin is bad, but what of that? It is an
old distich :
" Despair not,
Ye who are wont to sin,
And by my example
Make your peace with God."
What is the example that this Magdalen holds
up for our emulation? Let us look into the small
pictures on her right and left. They are scenes that
suggest the old story of her life, half biblical, half
legendary. In sacred art, Saint Mary Magdalen
is identified with Mary, the sister of Martha and of
Lazarus. Study these crude but suggestive pictures
and there will come a sense of what such a thing
as this meant to many a poor, sinning, repentant
soul centuries ago.
The first scene is the upper one at the left. Here
the Magdalen is shown anointing the feet of Christ
with the ointment from her alabaster box, and
wiping them with her luxuriant hair. The setting
of this scene is merely suggestive, and is borrowed
from the old mosaics. A little architectural canopy
suggests a house. A tower suggests that the scene
is laid in a city, for every great city in those days
was a city of strongholds. It was centuries after
the time of this picture before these quaint scenic
devices went out of fashion. The story of this first
picture is given in Luke VII: 36-50. The second
30 Ubc Brt of tbe lamsi palace
scene is the upper one at the right. Here Lazarus
is raised from the dead, " bound hand and foot
with grave-clothes," as related in John XI: 1-46.
In early art, this incident was always significant
of the resurrection of the Christ also, for it was a
long time before the representation of the actual
scene of the resurrection of the Saviour was even
attempted in art. In all of these early pictures the
body of Lazarus is wrapped like a mummy. The
characteristic traditional attitude of the bystanders,
holding their noses, is suggested by John XI: 39.
In the second picture on the left is represented the
meeting between Christ and the Magdalen, in the
garden by the tomb of the Saviour, immediately
after the resurrection, as it is described so graph-
ically in John XX: 11-18. This subject is a very
'familiar one in sacred art and is known as the
" Noli me tangere," meaning " Touch me not."
The phrase is a quotation from John XX: 17.
To one who has attentively read the passages of
Scripture that we >have referred to as the sources
of the inspiration of these crude little pictures, the
scenes take on a new and distinct significance. The
first one stands for repentance and the promise of
the forgiveness of sin. The second one stands for
faith in the Saviour and its sure reward. The third
stands for the great realization that comes to every
true believer. It was to the Magdalen that Christ
Ubc UU0cano«B83flnttnc i)atnting5 31
rtiade His first appearance after His resurrection.
All fhree of these scenes figure prominently in later
art.
With the Noli me tangere, the biblical story of
the Magdalen comes to a close. What follows is
wholly legendary, drawn from various Sources,
mostly ProvengaL According- to the accounts, aftef
the ascension of Christ, Mary and Martha and
Lazarus and a certain other member of the larger
body of disciples, Maximin by name, incurred the
hatred of the heathen peoples on the Galilean coast
of the Mediterranean Sea, among whom they went
to preach. In company with other disciples, the
four were put on board a vessel without sails, or
oars, or rudder, and set adrift in the sea. But the
frail craft was providentially guided across the
deep, landing at an island, in the mouth of the
river Rhone, that is now the town of Les SainteS
Maries. From this point the voyagers made their
Way to the neighbouring commercial city of Mas-
silia, now known as Marseilles, whence came the
great galleys mentioned in Macaulay's Horatius :
" From the proUd maft Of Pisae,
Queen of the western waves,
Where ride Massilia's triremes
Heavy with fair-haired slaves."
Here the disciples were ill received by the pagan
inhabitants, who refused them both food and
32 ^be Btt Of tbc xatrisi Palace
shelter, and were on the point of sending them back
to Italy, even as slaves. At the very risk of their
lives, the holy pilgrims took their stand under the
porch of a pagan temple, from which point of
vantage they preached to the people, fearlessly up-
braiding them for their senseless idolatry. Here
■also the disciples performed many miracles. This
is the subject of the second picture on the right.
In the background is the fortified city of Massilia.
Finally achieving the conversion of many of the
people, Mary departed from her companions, leav-
ing the city and making her way alone into the
mountainous wilderness of Provence, lying to the
east of Marseilles. Here she .took up her abode
in a holy cavern, now known as the Sainte Baume,
where she lived a life of penitence, in solitude and
fasting, for thirty years, clad only in her long and
beautiful hair. During the last years of her penance,
she was visited daily by angels, who carried her
up into the regions of heaven, there to behold
visions of the joy that passes understanding, pre-
pared for the truly repentant and believing sinner.
This is the subject of the third picture on
the left. As the life of the holy penitent
drew to a close, she was tenderly cared for and
ministered unto by guardian angels, as shown
in the third picture on the right. Finally, when
the end was near, an angelic messenger ap-
Ube ^uscano«3B^3antfne paintings 33
peared to Maximin in the city, and warned him that
the Magdalen lay dying in the cave. Maximin's
astonishment was great, for no one knew of Mary's
place of retirement, and she had long since been
given up for dead. But led by the angel, and with
the Holy Sacrament in his hands, he hurried to the
cave, arriving just in time to administer the last
rites of the church to the dying penitent. This is
the subject of the fourth picture on the left. The
body of the holy Magdalen was lovingly borne to
the city and there given burial by Maximin. This
is the subject of the fourth picture on the right,
where again the canopy and the tower are
introduced.
No saint of the early church was more popular
during the middle ages than was Saint Mary Mag-
dalen. She was regarded by rich and poor alike
with a passionate admiration and adored with a
pious devotion that it is difficult for us in these mod-
ern times even to begin to appreciate. The very fact
that she was lowly and human and sinful made for
her a place in the mediaeval heart that could not
be claimed or occupied even by the great martyrs
whose lives had been holy and pure. Could the
forbidding figure in this picture relax bet grimness,
and open her thin lips to speak, to tell us of the
prayers to which she has listened during the pass-
ing of centuries, what a wonderful human revela-
34 Ube Btt of tbe mffiji ipaiace
tion it would be! Look upon her, ithen, with awe
and respect. She is something more than an ugly
painted board. She is the Spirit of the Middle
Ages, and much that is good and great in art be-
gins with her.
On the wall under the Magdalen is another crude
picture. Number loo, probably somewhat later in
date, of the thirteenth century, brought from the
Convent of the Badia. It represents Saint John
the Baptist, patron saint of the city of Florence,
quaintly presenting his own head in a charger. The
peculiar bodily emaciation of the Forerunner, and
his garment of sheep-skin, are characteristic of this
important saint, who figures so prominently in
Florentine art.
Near by, Numbeir loi, is still another curious
altar-piece, representing the Madonna, with scenes
from the life of our Lord, together with various
saints well identified by inscriptions. The picture
dates from about the middle of the thirteenth cen-
tury and was brought from the Convent of Santa
Chiara in Lucca, being the work of a certain local
painter, Bonaventura Berlinghieri by name. The
Order to which this convent belonged was Fran-
ciscan, and hence the presence in the picture not
only of the founder, Saint Clara, but also of Saint
Francis, Saint Anthony, and the archangel Saint
Michael. This composition brings us down to the
trbe 'C;uscano»3Si?3anttne paintings 3s
time of the second great religious revival in Europe,
the time when the importance of the Vallombrosans
as patrons of art in Tuscany was rivalled by that
of the great Mendicant Orders of Saint Francis
and Saint Dominick. Concerning these younger
Orders and their founders and important saints
there is much that it is needful to say. We shall
return to the subject in connection with the study
of later paintings.
Here, at the very outset, we have seen examples
from the extreme periods of Italian art, in the crude,
barbaric pictures of the earliest period and in the
splendid David of the high Renaissance. Between
these examples stretches a long range of art history,
covering in all something over three centuries,
richly filled with works of great significance, many
of which it is our privilege to study and appreciate
in this volume.
Inasmudi as the large majority of these great
paintings were designed for the decoration of
church altars, it will not be out of place for us to
pause, before proceeding with our study, to con-
sider briefly the various forms that such decoration
assumes. Supported directly upon the altar or on
the wall back of it there was usually a devotional
picture which was known as the altar-piece. The
frame of the altar-piece was generally rectangular
in shape, although frequently its top was semicir-
36 Ube Hrt of tbe mmst palace
cular or pointed. Often the semicircular or pointed
top took the form of a separate picture surmount-
ing the main one. In such case the semicircular
form was called a lunette, and the pointed or tri-
angular one a pinnacle. Some altar-pieces are sur-
mounted by several lunettes or pinnacles. The
frame of the altar-piece was frequently embellished
with rich, carved ornamentation, or small panels
containing painted figures or heads. In many oases,
for the better protection of the altar-piece, it was
"provided with hinged doors or covers, bearing ad-
ditional paintings on both sides. An altar-piece
with one door was called a diptych^ as there were
two panels, side by side, when the door was open.
Where there were two doors, presenting three
panels, it was called a triptych. The same names
were employed to designate compositions consisting
of two or three divisions like panels. Where there
were many doors or panels, the arrangement was
known as a polyptych. A round picture was known
as a tondo, but this form was rarely used for an
altar-piece. Beneath the altar-piece, or sometimes
let into it at the bottom, was a small compartment
called the tabernacle, designed to contain the sacra-
ment. Small paintings frequently decorated the
doors of the tabernacle. On the top of tlhe altar
was a long platform, or low step, upon which the
crucifix, candlesticks, and other altar furnishings
Ube XTuscano * JSssantine palnttngs 37
were placed. This was called the gradino, or pre-
della, and its front panels were frequently deco-
rated with small paintings representing subjects as-
sociated with that of the main altar-piece. Taken
all in all, the altar and its decoration afforded most
admirable opportunity for the exercise of artistic
craftsmanship, — opportunity of which the artist
was usually in no way loth to avail himself. We
have reason to congratulate ourselves that many
a beautiful altar-piece has been preserved for us
still in the fine, old frame that formed its original
setting. Frame and picture, in those days, consti-
tuted an organic, harmonious unit, designed
throughout by the artist.
CHAPTER IV
THE GOTHIC PIONEERS: CIMABUE, GIOTTO, AND
GADDI
It is an unfortunate characteristic of the valuable
modern " constructive " school of art criticism, that
it seems wantonly destructive of many old tradi-
tions that 'have been for centuries the treasured
heritage of the appreciative student of art. Pictures
that for ages have been accepted as the work of
certain artists, are now roughly torn from their
comfortable domesticity, only to be introduced to
a strange parent whose name they must hencefor-
ward bear. So it is with the work of Cimabue.
The careful student admits that not a single exist-
ing painting can be definitely proven to have been
executed by this notable artist on any authority
better than that of the sixteenth-century " gossip
Vasari," whose attributions of works executed so
long before his own time are exceedingly uncertain.
But we do know, definitely, that such a painter as
Cimabue existed. We know that he was born in
Florence in the year 1240 and that he was named
Giovanni in honour of the patron saint of the city.
38
XCbe (Botbic pioneers 39
In good truth, the name was well-chosen, for Gio-
vanni Cimabue became indeed the forerunner of
that greater artist who was to redeem painting
from its low estate in Italy, and give it the real im-
pulse that sent it sweeping to the heights of the later
Renaissance. And so, while we admit the force
of the reasoning of the modern critics, we feel justi-
fied in complaining that they frequently rob us of
our dear, old notions, giving us nothing but .their
disagreements in return. Admitting the flimsiness
of our protest against the robbery, we cling tena-
ciously to the old empty namps merely to 'have some-
thing to which to pin our faith. If, after all,
Cimabue did not paint certain pictures that we
have been accustomed to think of as his, they were
certainly painted by some ofie whose work was sub-
stantially like that which Cimabue must have pro-
duced. That Cimabue was an unusual genius
is necessarily inferred from the passage in Dante's
Purgatorio, written not many years after the
painter's death:
" Cimabue thought
To lord it over painting's field; and now
The cry is Giotto's, and his name ecHpsed."
For want, then, of a better name with which to
identify those first remarkable efforts to represent
nature more truly than had before been done, let
40 XLbc art ot tbe mfflsi Palace
us continue, for a while at least, to speak of them as
the work of Cimabue.
While yet a schoolboy in Florence, Cimabue had
given distinct evidence of the very marked artistic
talent with which he was endowed. As a young
man " he soon greatly surpassed his teachers both
in design and colouring," as Vasari tells us, and at
a comparatively early age launched forth into an
active and studious artistic life. In a very short
time he established for himself the reputation of
being one of the most prominent and promising of
the younger painters in Florence, and commissions
began to come to him for works of importance. The
painter was not slow to display his unique ability.
Later, being commissioned, according to Vasari,
" to paint a large picture in the abbey of the Santa
Trinita in Florence, for the monks of Vallombrosa,
he made great efiforts to justify the high opinion
already formed of him, and evinced improved
powers of invention in that work, and displayed a
fine manner in the attitudes of the Virgin, whom
he depicted with the Child in her arms, and with nu-
merous angels, in ,the act of worship, around her;
on la gold ground. The picture, being finished, was
placed by the monks over the high altar of the
church, whence, being afterwards removed to give
place to the work of Alexio Baldovinetti, ... it was
placed in a smaller chapel of the south aisle of the
Ube Gotbic iptoneers 41
same church." Subsequently this notable work was
removed to the Academy Gallery, where it now
hangs in the First Room of the Tuscan Masters,
near the earlier pictures upon which we have al-
ready commented.
This picture of the Madonna Enthroned, Num-
ber 102, presents an unusually large figure of the
Virgin, seated upon a throne of elaborate construc-
tion, beneath the base of which are three open
arches, in which appear the figures of four ancient
prophets, bearing scrolls inscribed with prophecies
regarding the coming of the Saviour. On either
side of the Virgin are four attendant angels. The
Child, a diminutive adult, is held upon the Virgin's
left knee. It was many a long year after the
death of Cimabue before any artist succeeded in
painting a child that looked like a child. A brief
comparison between this picture and the earlier
one near by will show the student that the old types
and forms were still closely adhered to by Cimabue,
but that he put into his work a remarkable degree
of life, — remarkable when we stop to consider that
such a thing had not been done before. Even a,
glance will enable us to appreciate the enthusiasm of
Vasari, who states that Cimabue "achieved little
less than the resurrection of painting from the
dead." This appreciation would be heightened
were we to make a present visit to the Church of
42 XCbe Hrt of tbe 'Clfflst Ipalace
Santa Maria Novella, there to view the great
Madonna of the Rucellai, upon which work Cim-
abue's fame principally rests. It was this latter
picture that, according to the legend, was carried
by a joyful throng, in demonstrative procession,
through the streets of the city. In substance it is
similar to the one in the Academy, lacking the
prophets and with the number of the angels reduced
to six. These six angelic figures are kneeling in
adoration at the sides of the throne and for decora-
tive beauty have hardly been surpassed in any period
of art. Both paintings show the strictest observ-
ance of the old rule of precise bilateral symmetry
in the composition. With the exception of the
central figures of the Madonna and Child, the fig-
ures on one side, both in arrangement and posture,
are in accurate reversal of those on the other. The
face and form of the Virgin, so obstinately main-
tained in both pictures, is that which was handed
down to Cimabue as the crystallized product of
many centuries of Byzantine art. It was not
original with him and he did not dare to change
it. In the high lights of the Academy picture
there is an occasional suggestion of the effect of a
mosaic. Cimabue was a worker in mosaic as well
as a painter.
All of the pictures that we 'have thus far noted
were painted in tempera, or distemper, upon wooden
TTbe ©otbic pioneets 43
panels. In the distemper process, the pigments are
ground in water mixed with gum, albumen, or
some similar material, which will give body to the
paint, and prevent its scaling off when dry. In
Italy this method was used exclusively down to the
fifteenth century, when the Flemish method of
painting in oil was introduced.
Cimabue's supremacy as the one great master in
early art was maintained for many years. It was
not until he had reached middle age that any worthy
rival appeared, and then it was among his own
pupils. The old legend tells us that one day, when
Cimabue had occasion to journey from Florence
to Vespignano, his attention was attracted by a
boy who was in charge of a small flock of sheep in
a pasture beside the way. The lad was engaged in
sketching upon a smooth face of rock, using as a
crayon a small piece of softer stone, and producing
a remarkably lifelike drawing of one of the animals
that was feeding near by. The great master was
surprised and delighted with the accuracy of the
lad's drawing,' and inquired where he had learned
the art. The lad's reply indicated that Nature was
his only teacher. Cimabue then asked whether the
boy would like to come with him and learn to paint
beautiful pictures. The boy expressed his entire
willingness to do so, provided his father v/ould give
his consent; whereupon Cimabue learned the name
44 xrbe Hrt of tbe xafllsi palace
of ithe father and made the necessary inquiry, gain-
ing the ready consent of the parent to the appren-
ticeship of the lad in the great artist's studio.
Thus, Ambrogiotto di Bondone, born 1266 and
commonly known as Giotto, began the career that
was to eclipse the fame of his master.
The Academy possesses only one picture
definitely attributed to Giotto, the large altar-piece.
Number 103, brought from the Church of the
Ognissanti. In the first glance at this interesting
picture the tremendous advance made over the
master by the pupil is distinctly evident. The old
types and forms, the old conventional draperies and
backgrounds, are gone for ever. Giotto's Madonna
is painted from the living model, and her figure is
solid and real. To be sure, her limbs are not
properly articulated, and sihe is painted as if she
were carved out of solid material, but there is still
a stateliness and reality about her that is little short
of marvellous when one considers the earlier repre-
sentations of the same subject. The child is still
the symbolic manikin of the barbaric pictures, but
displays the same roundness and solidity as does the
Virgin. The two figures of kneeling guardian
angels are admirably painted, likewise the saints
on either side of the throne. The old bilateral sym-
metry is maintained, but with much of added grace
in composition. As in the earlier pictures, also, the
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Madonna is colossal in stature compared with the
other figures. This is because of her importance.
The standing figure in front of the group at the
left is Saint Catherine of Alexandria, identified by
the royal crown which she holds in her hands, while
that in the corresponding position on the rig'ht is
the Magdalen, bearing her alabaster box of pre-
cious ointment.
The marked differences between these two Ma-
donnas by Cimabue and Giotto illustrate perfectly
the differences between the characters of the two
men. The older painter was haughty and austere,
censorious in his criticism, even of his own works.
It is said that many a picture started by Cimabue was
by him destroyed while in the making, because of
some real or fancied fault in the workmanship or
' materials. Giotto, on the other hand, was wholly
lovable and human, jolly and companionable. How
easily we can picture to ourselves the mischievous
boy in the studio of the dignified master. It is said
that once, when Cimabue was engaged in painting
an important picture, the little apprentice, during a
brief absence of the master, painted a fly upon the
nose of the figure upon which Cimabue had just
been at work. Upon the master's return, he made
several ineffectual attempts to brush away the of-
fending insect without touching the wet paint, be-
coming aware of the deception only when the sup-
46 Zbc Hrt of tbe TIlffi3i palace
pressed giggles of the apprentice became uncontrol-
lable. The old writers have given us many such
stories of Giotto's boyhood and manhood, all indi-
cating the intensely human spirit and the keen wit
that were ihis. But, withal, he knew his power as
a master-painter. Upon one occasion, when Pope
Benedict XI 'had sent a courtier to visit the great
painter in Florence, in order to form an estimate of
his ability, the envoy appeared at Giotto's workshop
and made himself and his errand known, asking
the painter to execute for him a drawing that he
might take back to the Pope as a sample of the
artist's work. The great master, with exceeding
gravity and courtesy, spread out a clean sheet of
paper before him. Then, taking up a brush charged
with red colour, he held his elbow close to his side
and with one even, sweeping stroke described an
exact circle upon the paper. Turning to the envoy,
with a smile and a gracious bow, Giotto said simply
" There is your drawing." The courtier suspected
a joke and inquired if that was all he was to get.
Giotto's reply was still most courteous, — " That
is enough and to spare. Take it and you will see."
The envoy protested, but nothing more would the
painter give him, and he departed in great dis-
pleasure, thinking that he had been made to play
the fool. Upon his despatching the drawing to
the Pope, however, with a circumstantial account
Ube (5otbic ipioneers 47
of how it had been made, the pontiff at once recog-
nized the wonderful abihty of the masterful stroke
and easily accorded to Giotto the honour of being
the greatest artist of his time.
Giotto's great supremacy can not be properly
appreciated from a study of this single Madonna
in the Academy. It is only in his great frescoes
that his keen and subtle penetration, dramatic in-
stinct and technical ability can be adequately
observed. Although the best of these are in Assisi
and Padua, a number of excellent examples are in
the Church of Santa Croce, in Florence. The Acad-
emy Gallery, however, possesses a remarkable set
of small panel pictures by Giotto's best pupil,
Taddeo Gaddi. They may be found hanging near
the large altar-pieceS to which our attention has
been directed. Until recent years, these pictures.
Numbers 104 to 115 and 117 to 126, were attrib-
uted to Giotto himself, upon the authority of
Vasari. In any event, they are excellent examples
of the work of Giotto's school. Many of the sub-
jects are repetitions of those at Assisi, and all were
doubtless designed and composed by Giotto, al-
though executed by the inferior hand of his disciple.
Taddeo Gaddi was born about 1300, the son of
Gaddo Gaddi, an intimate friend of Giotto. The
great master was godfather to the boy, who soon
became his pupil. Upon the death of his father,
48 Ube Hrt of tbe mffisi palace
Taddeo attached himself closely to Giotto, becoming
the master's most reliable assistant. After the
death of the master, the disciple easily ranked as
the best living painter, although his work is dis-
tinctly inferior to that of Giotto, whose genius,
indeed, was greatly in advance of his time. It was
many years after Giotto's death before the great
impulse that he gave to painting was fully realized.
The series of small pictures, of which we have
made mention, originally formed the decoration of
the vestment presses in the sacristy of Santa Croce.
They are all worthy of close scrutiny and studious
attention, as excellent examples of the dramatic,
story-telling art of the period. We can not fail to
note the precision with which the important ele-
ments of each scene are presented, to the almost
entire exclusion of such things as add nothing to
the effectiveness of the presentation. The pictures
constitute two parallel series, each originally inclu-
ding thirteen panels. Four of them are missing, two
of which are at present in the Berlin Gallery. The
first set of twelve panels at hand represent familiar
subjects from the lives of the Virgin and of Christ :
Number 104, the Visitation; Number 105, the Na-
tivity; Number 106, the Adoration of the Magi;
Number 107, the Presentation of the Child in the
Temple; Number 108, Christ disputing with the
Doctors; Number 109, the Baptism of Christ;
XCbc (Botbic pioneers 49
Number no, the Transfiguration; Number in, the
Last Supper; Number 112, the Crucifixion; Num-
ber 113, tlie Resurrection; Number 114, Christ
appearing to the Holy Women; Number 115, the
IncreduHty of Thomas. These pictures exhibit tra-
ditional composition and details, but, withal, they
display a versatility and a representative instinct
that excite our wonder and admiration. They are
painted in tempera on wood, enclosed in Gothic
frames of ancient pattern.
The less familiar history of Saint Francis, sup-
plying the scenes represented in the remaining
panels, Number 117 to 126, is one of the important
stories in monastic lore, and has a notable place in
the history of sacred art. Santa Croce is a Fran-
ciscan Church, whose very name, Holy Cross, is
suggestive of great and important things in both
sacred and profane history. It suggests not only
the Great Sacrifice upon which the structure of the
Christian religion is based, but it also suggests the
great Crusades, those marvellous, emotional, relig-
ous movements of the eleventh and twelfth cen-
turies, whose purpose was to rescue the Holy Land
from the domination of the Saracen. Out of these
movements grew the second great religious revival
in Europe, that of the thirteenth century, led by
those two great characters. Saint Francis and Saint
Dominic, so strikingly compared by Dante :
so Zbc Uvt of tbe TUffist iPalace
"One, seraphic all
In fervency; for wisdom upon earth,
The other, splendour of cherubic light"
Saint Francis was born in Assisi in the year
1 182, tbe son of a wealtby merchant, Pietro Ber-
Tiardone. Giovanni was tbe name properly given
to the boy, but as bis father carried on a large silk
and wool trade with mercbants ' in France, and de-
sired bis son to become his partner and successor,
tbe little fellow was early taught to speak French.
Among his comrades, the boy was jocularly called
the Frenchman, — Francesco, — by which cogno-
men in Italian, as by Frangois in tbe French, and
Francis in the English, he is known to history.
At the age of about sixteen or seventeen, Francis
contracted a lingering fever that brought him near
to death. During tbe months that passed as he
languished upon the sick-bed, his thoughts turned
frequently to the things of God and to his former
life of ease and self-indulgence. It had been his
nature to be gay and prodigal, but withal generous
and compassionate. As be realized how close to
death he was drawn, a great contempt for worldly
things was born in his mind, and his whole outlook
On life was transformed. Recovering from the ill-
ness, his every act was significant of tbe change
that had been wrought in him. Once, meeting an
old beggar upon the street, Francis recognized in
Ube ©otbfc pioneers 51
him a former wealthy citizen. In a burst of com-
passion, the young man took off his rich cloak, and
exchanged it for the tattered one worn by the poor
wretch. At another time, while Francis was pray-
ing in the dilapidated old Church of San Damiano,
in Assisi, he thought he heard a voice saying,
" Francis, repair my Church, which falleth to ruin."
Greatly impressed and thinking that the command
referred to the condition of the building in which
he knelt, he rose to his feet and hurried home.
Possessing himself of a quantity of valuable
material, he sold it and took the proceeds to the
priests of San Damiano, to be used in the restora-
tion of the edifice. His father, discovering what
had been done, was filled with wrath, setting out
after Francis, to effect a recovery of the money,
and the young man fled from the city, hiding him-
self in a cave. After many days of concealment,
haggard, distracted, ragged and torn, but with a
changed purpose in life, Francis made his way
home, hooted along the streets as a madman. Re-
fusing to obey his father's command to dress and
'conduct himself as befitted his family's station,
Francis was at first imprisoned in his own room
and then taken by his father to the bishop for
discipline as a refractory son. Inspired, possibly,
by the somewhat similar incident in the story of
San Giovanni Gualberto, in the presence of the
S2 Ube art of tbe Xllffisi palace
bishop Francis tore off his clothes and threw them
at his father's feet declaring that his Heavenly-
Father was the only one whom he would thence-
forward recognize. The bishop, struck with the
religious fervour of the young man, took a rough
cloak' from a beggar standing by and gave it to
Francis, telling the father not to interfere with the
life of devotion and poverty to which the son had
dedicated himself. This is the subject of the first
of the panel pictures, Number 117, in the series to
which we are devoting our present attention. The
incident is portrayed very dramatically, the evident
rage of the father who would lay violent hands
upon his son, and the derision of the ubiquitous
boys who are throwing stones, being most effective
and realistic. This occurred when Francis was in
his twenty-fifth year.
Taking up his habitation in a small cell by the
chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary as Queen of
the Angels, Santa Maria degli Angeli, near the base
of the hill upon which Assisi is built, Francis pur-
sued a life of poverty and penance, sustained only
by alms and clad simply in a coarse garment girded
with a hemipen cord, all the while preparing himself
for his chosen mission as a preacher of the gospel
of Christ. Adopting as his rule of life the text
" Take nothing for your journey, neither staves,
nor scrip, neither bread, neither money; neither
Ube ©otbic iptoneers 53
have two coats apiece," from Luke IX : 3, Francis
eventually set forth to preach repentance and the
new life.
The times were in his favour, and no sooner had
he begun his preaching than followers gathered
around him. The number of his disciples rapidly-
increased, and it became necessary for the leader
to give them a Rule by which their lives and works
were to be directed. The spirit of the Rule was
that of the first Apostles of Christ, namely Holy
Poverty, and Active Christianity. Francis then
went to Rome to obtain from Pope Innocent III a
sanction for the new Order. At first the Pope was
not inclined to extend official recognition to such a
seemingly fanatical institution, but at night he
dreamed that he saw the walls of the Church of
San Giovanni Laterano, in Rome, tottering, and
saved from absolute ruin only by the powerful sup-
port of the great figure of the man whose request
for recognition the Pope was disposed to refuse.
This is the subject of the next panel in the series.
Number 118.
Immediately upon awakening from his dream,
the Pope sent for Francis, and gave him full con-
firmation of the Rule of his new Order, and full
authority to preach. This is the subject of the next
panel. Number 119. Upon the confirmation of his
Order, Francis returned to Assisi, gathering around
54 XCbe Hrt of tbe XDlffisi palace
him his followers, for whom a conventual habita-
tion was constructed on the small lot of ground
known as the Porzioncula, or Portiuncula, where
stood originally his own narrow cell. One night,
Francis being absent from his companions for
prayer, the sleeping brothers were awakened by
a startling apparition of a flaming chariot that
entered by the gate and drove around the court.
An orb of dazzling brilliancy rested upon the
chariot, in which the wondering friars recognized
the spiritual semblance of their absent leader.
After circling the court thrice, the apparition van-
ished. The significance attached to this legend is
uncertain. It is the subject of the next panel, Num-
ber 120.
Following the instruction given by Christ to his
disciples, many groups of missionaries were soon
sent out by Francis to preach to the heathen peoples
in the lands bordering on the Mediterranean. Of
these groups, one was sent to Ceuta, in Morocco,
where its members all suffered a glorious martyr-
dom. This is the subject of the next panel, Num-
ber 121.
When the Order was thirteen years old, it was
further dignified by receiving a solemn confirmation
from Pope Honorius III. This is the subject of the
next panel. Number 122.
The two following panels represent mystical sub-
XCbe ©otUfc ipfoneera 55
jects from the life of the Saint that are of frequent
occurrence in art. In the first one, Number 123,
while Francis was engaged in celebrating the Mass
of the Nativity, the Holy Virgin, in a vision,
descended frotn heaven carrying the Christ Child
anl placing Him in the extended arms of the Saint.
In the next panel, Number 124, while Anthony of
Padua, a Portuguese scholar who had been drawn
to the Franciscan Order through the martyrdom of
the missionaries in Morocco, was preaching in the
Chapter at Aries, he was strengthened and inspired
by a vision of Saint Francis appearing before him.
Upon the confirmation of his Order by Pope
Honorius, Francis resigned his office of Superior
and betook himself to a soHtary retreat upon the
bleak mountain of La Verna, or Alverna, overlook-
ing that beautiful district of which we have made
mention, the Casentino. Here, as Dante tells us, —
"On the hard rock
'Twixt Arno and Tiber, he from Christ
, Took the last signet, which his limbs two years
Did carry."
This extraordinary miracle, the receiving of the
stigmata, is the incident most frequently met with
in pictures representing scenes from the life of Saint
Francis. Saint Bonaventura, " the Seraphic Doc-
tor," General of the Franciscan Order in the latter
s6 xcBe art of tbe XDiffi3i IPalace
half of the thirteenth century, and author of the first
Life of Saint Francis, thus describes the marvellous
vision : " After having fasted for forty days in
his solitary cell on Mount Alverna, and passed the
time in all the fervour of prayer and ecstatic con-
templation, transported almost to heaven by the ar-
dour of his desires, then he belield, as it were, a
seraph with six shining wings, bearing down upon
him from above, and between his wings was the
form of a man crucified. By this he understood to
be figured a heavenly and immortal intelligence, sub-
ject to death and humiliation. And it was mani-
fested to him that he was to be transformed into a re-
semblance of Christ, not by the martyrdom of the
flesh, but by the might and fire of Divine love.
When the vision had disappeared, and he had re-
covered a little from its effect, it was seen that in his
hands, his feet, and side he carried the wounds of
our Saviour." On account of this vision. Saint
Francis and his Order have frequently been styled
Seraphic. The incident is the subject of the next
panel in the series. Number 125. The miracle took
place two years before the death of Saint Francis,
which occurred in 1226. He was canonized in 1228.
The final picture in the series, Number 126, rep-
resents the death of the Saint. When he knew that
his end was near, he ordered his companions simply
to lay him on the breast of " his mother, the earth,"
Ubc <5otbic pioneers s?
and there, with the words of David's prayer for
comfort, the one hundred and forty-second Psalm,
upon his Hps, the Seraphic Father died. And so
passed one of the most striking figures in Christian
history, — one with whose life we must be tolerably
familiar if we are to appreciate many a fine work
of devotional art.
While the original Rule of the Franciscan Order
permitted the friars to possess nothing that they
could call their own, the Order was not very old
before this proscription was substantially modified.
Upon the death of Saint Francis, large donations
of wealth of all kinds were showered on the Order
by states and individuals everywhere in Christen-
dom, and the magnificent Church of Saint Francis
was reared in Assisi. During the following
century, the best artists, Giotto and his pupils, were
called upon to decorate the edifice, and thus began
the Franciscan patronage of art, an influence of
great importance in the history of painting ulti-
mately far outweighing that of the Vall'ombrosans in
Tuscany, and sharing honours with the Dominican
patronage of art throughout all of Europe. Before
the close of the thirteenth century, work had been
commenced upon the great Franciscan Church of
Santa Croce in Florence, whence came the four-
teenth century panels by Taddeo Gaddi to which
we have been devoting attention.
SB XTbe art ot tbe xaWsi Palace
It must be observed further, that while Giotto and
his pupils were developing 'art in Florence, a parallel
movement had been started in Siena. The Academy
possesses no work by Duccio, the great founder of
the Sienese School, whose pictures are comparable
with those of Cimabue; but there is one important
and typical work of this School which must not be
overlooked. Ambrogio Lorenzetti was a painter
whose active period was practically contemporary
with that of Taddeo Gaddi, and although a Sienese
by birth and training, he was largely influenced
by the work of Giotto. The Presentation in the
Temple, Number 134, is a panel that must origi-
nally have possessed great beauty, although it is
sadly marred by restoration and ret-painting. It was
painted in 1342, and was brought to the Academy
from the Hospital of Saints Gregorio and Niccolo
in Sasso, Siena.
The incident portrayed in this picture is a most
dignified one. It will be remembered that it was on
this occasion that the aged Simeon, holding the
Child in his arms, pronounced the Nunc dimittis, as
recorded in the third chapter of Luke, verses 29 to
32. The whole composition is of a dignity and
beauty quite in keeping with that of the story. Con-
sidering the date of the picture, the architectural
construction of the temple is rendered with remark-
able skill. The theatrical effect of presenting the
Ube ©otbic iPfoneers 59
interior of a building as if it were a scene set upon
a stage, was common in these early paintings, and
displays some knowledge of " one-point " perspec-
tive.
Such, then, was the character of the artistic talent
that was invoked by the wealthy Orders and by
other institutions, guilds, and individuals in their
great desire for the fitting decoration and furnish-
ing of the many prominent sacred and secular build-
ings that were so rapidly erected during the thir-
teenth and fourteenth centuries.
CHAPTER V
THE INFLUENCE OF THE CLOISTER: LORENZO
MONACO, ANGELICO, AND FABRIANO
In the course of time, toward the close of the
fourteenth century, the Religious Orders them-
selves began to produce artists of importance. The
Benedictines had long been the preservers of the
traditions of mediaeval art, and it is not surprising
to note that the earliest artist of any individual
prominence to be produced by any Order after the
time of Giotto was a member of the reformed Bene-
dictine Order of the Camaldolesi, to which we have
previously referred. This painter was named Lo-
renzo, and as he was a Benedictine monk, was
entitled Don Lorenzo Monaco. The title of Don
or Dom, signifying Dominus, Lord, was peculiar
to the Benedictines, just as that of Fra or Frate,
signifying Brother, was peculiar to the members
of the Mendicant Orders. The Benedictines were
also, from early times, the only possessors of im-
portant scientific laboratories, and the greatest in-
vestigators in medical and chemical knowledge.
60
Ube Unfluence ot tbe Cloister 6i
They discovered the methods of preparing some of
the finest colours known to the painter's art, and to
them may be credited practically all the perfection
of early technical processes in art and science. The
fact that but few of the names of such monkish
scientists or artists are known is accounted for by
the fact that they worked not for their own glory
or profit but for that of God and their Order. In
the triptych, Number 143, painted by Lorenzo Mon-
aco, for the Benedictine monks of the Badia of
Florence, we have a characteristic product of such
craftsmanship. The painter possessed no evident
knowledge of composition, but has displayed in his
work all the technical skill of the illuminator. In
the central panel is the Annunciation with a shrink-
ing Virgin and a floating angel, both maintaining
a conventional relation to one another. In the side
panels are several saints. The figure to the extreme
right will be identified readily as that of Saint Fran-
cis, the marks in his hands and feet being conspic-
uous, as is also the wound in his side, displayed
through a rent in his robe. The youthful figure
beside Saint Francis, with the sword and belt, is
Saint Procolo of Bologna, the military patron of
that city, who slew a blood-thirsty persecutor of
the early Christians, sent by the emperor to Bo-
logna. At the extreme left is Saint Catherine of
Alexandria, Virgin patroness and martyr, perhaps
62 TTbe Hrt of tbe mffiai ipalace
the most popular female saint in the calendar after
Saint Mary Magdalen. She is identified by Ifee
fragment of a spiked wheel that is beside her.
Saint Catherine was a royal princess and wears
a crown as of right. According to the ancient leg-
end she was the daughter of thehalf-brother of the
emperor Constantine the Great. Her mother
was the only daughter and heir of the king of Egypt
and it was in Alexandria that Catherine was born
near the close of the third century. She was beau-
tiful and talented and gave herself up to the study
of philosophy, soon becoming famous for her pro-
found learning, of which the large book that she
carries is symbolic. She is regarded as the pat-
roness of "Students and of educational institutions.
She was also a martyr, and as such she bears the
palm of victory. Beside her stands a wooden wheel,
rimmed with knives and spikes, the instrument of
her torture. Becoming converted to Christianity,
Catherine eloquently preached the truth to her peo-
ple, bringing many of them out of the darkness
of heathendom to the light of the new faith. Under
the persecutions of the emperor Maxentius, Cather-
ine was steadfast in her adherence to her Saviour.
Enamoured of her beauty, the imperial persecutor
endeavoured to corrupt her virginity, but without
success, as Catherine spurned his advances with
scorn. Enraged at his repulse, the tyrant ordered
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her to be tortured in a machine that he devised,
consisting of great spiked wheels designed to tear
her body to pieces. But as the beautiful body of
the saintly virgin was being bound to the wheels,
a burst of fire from heaven tore the dreadful ma-
chine asunder, the pieces flying in all directions,
and killing the executioners and many of those who
were gathered to witness the torture. Balked also
in the execution of this cruelty, Maxentius finally
caused his victim to be scourged and beheaded.
Standing beside Saint Catherine in the picture
is Saint Anthony Abbot, the founder of monachism,
also an early Egyptian character, born at Alexan-
dria. The pig at his feet is the symbol of the
appetites and sensuality that he conquered during
his life of spiritual struggle as a holy hermit in the
desert. He died about the middle of the fourth
century. This altar-piece was originally placed in
the old Benedictine Abbey of the Badia in Florence,
whence it came into the Academy collection.
Don Lorenzo Monaco was born about 1370 and
died in 1425. The triptych that engages our pres-
ent attention was probably painted during the latter
half of the artist's life, although it is distinctly of
fourteenth century design. We can only conjec-
ture the circumstances that are responsible for its
existemce. Saint Procolo is pecuHarly a Bolognese
patron, rarely found in pictures unassociated with
64 Ube Htt of tbe lamsi palace
the old university town. He stands here in the im-
portant place next to the Virgin, and his presence
in the group indicates some important Bolognese
affiliation of the person who was the donor of the
picture or for whom it was painted. It is probable
that Saint Catherine also is included for similar
reasons; the great University of Bologna, founded
during the fifth century, being an institution of
learning quite popular among the young Floren-
tines of the cinquecento, and having owed its con-
tinued existence and preservation through many
centuries largely to Benedictine influence and pro-
tection. The Badia of Florence, for which this trip-
tych was painted, was, in the time of Dante, a
favourite church among the nobility and the edu-
cated people of the city, as was also the old Church
of Saints Procolo and Nicomede in the Via dei Gir-
aldi, since suppressed and now reduced to a mere
oratory. This church belonged to the monks of
the Badia.
It will be observed from this brief discussion that
the apparent anachronous grouping of dififerent
saints in devotional pictures is to be regarded only
in the light of allegory. The role of the mediaeval
saint in a composition of sacred import is manifold.
At times he represents, in honorary capacity, the
donor or some other person whose patron he is. At
other times, he is introduced out of compliment to
JLbc Unfluence ot tbe Cloistec 65
an institution, or an Order, with which he is iden-
tified. Sometimes he is merely an accredited local
witness to the truth of the main subject of a relig-
ous composition. Very frequently he is glorified
as the protector from a calamity that is dreaded or
that has been miraculously avoided. In many in-
stances the saint's presence is symbolic of a multi-
plicity of such ideas. Viewed in such a light,
the study of these old altar-pieces and votive
pictures takes on a new and truly human inter-
est.
In order properly to appreciate the full meaning
of that oft-repeated subject, the Annunciation,
which O'Ccupies the central panel of this triptych,
one should be familiar with the account in the first
chapter of the Gospel of Saint Luke. The Celes-
tial Messenger is the Archangel Gabriel, who also
appeared to Zacharias to announce the birth of
John, as stated in the nineteenth verse of the chapter.
Here he floats easily down to earth, with his hands
crossed on 'his bosom, — one of the most beautiful
figures in early art. His posture is frequently re-
peated in later paintings. The figure and face of
the Virgin easily indicate that " she was troubled at
his saying." Above her, a white dove, symbolic of
the Holy Spirit of God, wings its way toward her.
In the upper medallion the Almighty looks down
from heaven in benediction upon His handmaid.
66 tibe Htt of tM TUtfisi Ipalace
The whole composition is the beautiful and ejcpres-
sive Symbol of the great mystery of the miraculous
Incarnation of the Deity, to the verity of which
revered and honoured saints of popular fame and
credit bear witness, Such is the character of the
devotional and mystical idealism that is the stuff
of which sacred art is made.
Slightly younger than Lorenzo Monaco, although
thoroughly contemporary with him, was that re-
markable monastic painter of much wider popular
renown, known as Fra Angelico. Born itf 1387, in
the province of Mugello, not far from the reputed
birthplace t of Giotto^ the talented young man was
early known as an artist, under his real name of
Guido di Pietro da Mugello. When he was twenty
years of age he entered the Dominican convent at
Fiesole, near Florence, assuming at that time the
name of Giovanni, by which he was known during
the remainder of his lifetime. Subsequently being
connected with the Monastery of San Marco
in Florence, Fra Giovanni was one of the
first and greatest of the painters of the early
Renaissance. The earlier painters, of the so-
called " Giottesque " period of the fourteenth cen-
tury, to which group properly belongs Don Lor-
enzo Monaco, were Fra Giovanni's immediate pred-
ecessors. Such was the purity and simplicity of
the life of Fra Giovanni, and such his holy and
Ubc flnfluence ol tbe Cloister 67
genuinely angelic demeanour that he earned the cog-
nomeo of Angelico, by which he is popularly known.
Shortly after his death, he was formally beatified
by the Church, thereafter being frequently referred
to as II Beato Angelico. Vasari tells us that this
extraordinary artist is said never to have painted a
representation of the Crucified Saviour without
such depth of feeling and devotion that while he
worked the tears literally streamed from his. eyes.
He never revtouched or altered anything that he had
once finished, scrupulously believing that it was the
will of God that all should be left as it was done the
first time. With all his excellencies, this most un-
common man was genuinely humble and modest,
persistently refusing worldly honours, many of
which might easily have been his had he been but so
much as willing to accept them.
That Fra Angelico and Don Lorenzo Monaco
were intimate, and that each had a certain influence
upon the other is clearly shown in the triptych,
Number i66, in the Academy Gallery. The small
paintings in the pinnacles are by Don Lorenzo,
while the main picture is by Fra Angelico. This
altar-piece was painted in 1445, for the Vallombro-
san Church of the Trinita, where it was preserved
in the sacristy, and whence it came into the Academy
collection. Although somewhat robbed of its origi-
nal brilliancy by much cleaning, this work is one
68 Zbc Brt of tbe mffisl palace
of the finest panels from the master's brush. It is
painted in tempera on wood, and depicts the Descent
from the Cross, the grouping and action in the com-
position being wonderfully fine, and set in a most
delightful landscape. The touching figure of the
Magdalen, distinguished by her long, yellow hair,
kneels upon the ground at the left, holding and
kissing the feet of the dead Christ. Behind her
kneels the Virgin, surrounded by other women who
hold in readiness the winding-sheet, forming a lovely
group. In the centre of the picture, the youthful
John the Evangelist supports the body of the Sa-
viour as it is tenderly lowered into his arms by
Joseph of Arimathea, just above him, and Nico-
demus, farther up on the left. Among the assist-
ants at the left of the cross may be noticed a life-
portrait of the painter's friend, the architect Michel-
ozzo, half-way up the ladder, wearing a black hood.
At the right, holding the crown of thorns and the
nails, and kneeling in the foreground, are two uni-
dentified figures, evidently portraits. Both of these
figures are habited in the fashion of the time when
the picture was painted, on€ of them wearing a
surplice, and both are represented with the halo of
rays around the head with which the " beati " or
" blessed " are invested in the sacred art. Beatifi-
cation, it will be remembered, is an early step toward
the canonization of a saint. In this picture the halo.
Zbc Untlttcnce of tbe Clotster 69
or nimbus, is well displayed in its commonest varia-
tions. For the beatified there are the rays ; for the
sanctified the solid nimbus, often decorated or let-
tered. The nimbus with which the Persons of the
Trinity are invested is of the " cruciform " type,
including in its broad disc three or four wide rays
arranged in the form of a cross. In the sixteenth
century, the nimbus was reduced to a mere outline
suggestion, and often omitted altogether.
Among the small figures of saints that fill the
niches of the frame of this triptych, we find several
whose presence is suggestive. In the left-hand pi-
laster, at the bottom is San Giovanni Gualberto,
founder of the Order for whose church the picture
was painted. In the corresponding position on the
right, the painter has given the honour to the foun-
der of his own Order, Saint Dominic, — readily
recognized by his white and black habit, his book,
and lily, and the star above his head. We shall touch
upon these attributes of Saint Dominic at another
time. The remaining figures on the frame, running
upward on the right are Saint Paul the Apostle,
Saint Peter Martyr and Saint Peter the Apostle.
On the left, in similar order, are Saint Philip the
Apostle, Saint Francis of Assisi, and the Archangel
Saint Michael. Throughout the entire triptych the
characteristic delicacy and refinement of its painter
are consistently displayed both in line and colour.
an4 ill the general harmony of th? composi-
tion.
Jn the small Room of Fra Angelico, opening off
the corridor that leads from the main entran(je of
the GalleT-y to the Tribuna of the David, are col-
lected many smaller panels by the Dominican artist,
that can hardly be given detailed atteption in snch
a limited work as this. Among them, however, must
be noted an interesting Last Judgment, Number
266, from the suppressed Camaldolesian Convent
of Santa Maria degli Aqgeli, in Florence. It is said
that the upper left-hand parts only are by Angelica,
the right-hand portion, depicting the Inferno, being
by an assistant. Indeed, it might well have bepQ
impossible for an Angelico to paint such torture
and agony as are there depicted. That is wpr}£
for a Diayolo. In the centre of the composition
are the open tombs, such as can still he seen in
use in the cemetery at San Miniato, and the risen
dead are being led to the left or driven to the right.
On the right are the various pits of hdl, described
so vividly in Dante's Inferno, crowded with the
Damned. At the bottom is a dreadful personifica-
tion of the Jaws of Death, crunching helpless vic-
tims.
On the left, the Blessed are received into the
arms of beautiful angels, and are led, dancing and
rejoicing, through a pleasant garden up to the Gates
UDe irnfluence of tbe Sloistet 71
of Pafadisie- It will be noted that both the chUfch-
rtlen and the laity afe well represented ott both sides
of the picture. Above is a Celestial vision of the
Saviour ad Judge, enthroned in a mandorla, Or al-
mortd-^shaped aureole, Surt-ounded by cherubim and
aefaphim, and by the assemblage of the Apostles
and Saints. At the extreme left is Saint Dominic
and at the extreme right Saint Francis. The figufes
of ithe angels and saints in this picture are all of
wondroUs beauty and grace of face and form, well
worthy of a close inspection. The Gates of Para-
dise opened for the Angelic Painter himself in his
sixty-eighth year.
Returning to the Room of the Tuscan Masters,
We devote our attention to anothef important Val-
lombrosan picture, Nunlbef 165, painted in 1423
by Gentile da Fabrianoi It is a most gorgeous
triptych, in excellent preservation, depicting the
Adoration of the Magi, and is regarded as the mas-
terpiece of the artist. It was painted for the sac-
risty of the Church of the Trinita, whenCe it was
brought to the Gallety.
Gentile was properly an Umbrian painter, born
at Fabriano, in the province known as the March
of Ancona, about 1365. Although some years older
than Fra AngeliCo, Gentile's active life was practi-
cally contemporaneous with that of the great Domin-
ican, and much of his work was done in Florence,
72 Zbc art ot tbe lUffisi IPalace
where he had a shop near the Church of the Tritiita.
In this triptych of the Adoration, we have one of
the best examples of the elaborate altar-pieces of
the early fifteenth century, still preserved in its fine,
old, original frame. Throughout the entire picture,
the care devoted to the detail in the exquisite decora-
tive work, both in colour and gold, is remarkable.
In this particular, no other picture of the period is
its equal, much of the decoration here having been
executed at first in low relief in plaster, or gesso,
and then gilded. The intricacy of the composition,
combined with the relatively excellent drawing, is
most unusual. To a great extent the traditional
features of the earlier treatment of the subject are
retained, but they are here presented clothed in
new beauties. The composition affords an excel-
lent example of the unique method of simultaneous
presentation of various incidents in a story that
seems to have been exceedingly popular at the time.
The subject of the Adoration of the Magi is very
frequently represented in sacred art. In canonical
Scripture, the story is given in one place only, the
first twelve verses of the second chapter of
the Gospel of Matthew. The presentation of
the incident in 'sacred art is a development
that is partly historical and legendary, as well as
mystic and symbolic. In the triptych under consid-
eration, Gentile da Fabriano has commenced his
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Ube llntluence of tbe Clotstec 73
story in the distance of the left-hand arch of the
upper frame of the picture. Here are seen the
figures of the three wise kings, met together upon
a mountain in their own land of the east, and over
their heads blazes the miraculous star. In the val-
ley at the foot of the mountain preparations are
being made for the long journey to the birthplace
of the new King. In the central arch, the courtly
train winds its way along the road leading to Jerusa-
lem, there to pay a diplomatic visit to Herod, the
Roman governor. In the third arch is seen the
town of Bethlehem, with the three kingly figures
approaching its portal. In the mind of the mediae-
val artist, all towns of any importance anywhere
were presumed to be fortified. Then, into the fore-
ground of the picture presses the gorgeous retinue,
following the three striking figures of the Magi.
These great personages have here dismounted from
their horses. Without the slightest evidence of sur-
prise at the mean surroundings in which they find
the Child, they draw near to Him in love and devo-
tion, typifying the coming of the Gentile nations
at the call of Christ. The elder king, traditionally
called Caspar, is the monarch of Tarsus, land of
wealth and commerce. He has removed his crown,
which now is on the ground before the Virgin-
Mother, and humbly kneels before the Babe, kissing
His tiny feet. Already Caspar has presented his
74 tEbe mt Qt tue TOMii ©sisce
rich gift of gold, symbolic Qf the Kingship of the
Saviour. The beautiful casket is in the hands of
the women behind the Virgin, who are examining
it with wonder and admiration. The Child places
His hand in blessing upon the head of Caspar.
The second king is of middle age. He is Me^
chior, monarch of Arabia and Nubia. He is just
about to kneel and remove his crown, and in his
hand he holds a beautiful casket containing frankin-
cense, which he offer? in worship, a symbol of the
Deity of the Child.
The younger king is Balthasar, monarch of Saba,
the land of precious spices. He has just dismounted,
and while his spurs are being removed by a servant,
he waits his turn to kneel before the Infant X^ord
and to offer Him a costly gift of myrrh, symbolic
of the Death and Burjal of the Redeemer, The
richly clothed and caparisoned retinue evidences the
wealth and importance of the Magi. To the best of
Gentile's knowledge and skill, a rich and lavish Ori-
ental touch has been given to this group in the em-
broidered cloaks and turbans, and by the "introduce
tion of the camel and the apes. It i? written in H
Chronicles, the ninth chapter and the twenty-flrat
verse, that there came to Solomon's kingdom, once
in every three years, " the ships of Tarshish, bring-
ing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks."
David's prayer for Solomon, in the seventy-second
^be UtttlttenGe ot tBe Cloister 75
Pfe^Iitt, was considered prophetic of the cotttiiig of
the Saviour, and in the tenth vet-se we firid What is
probably one of the early foundations for that por-
tion of the tradition that assigns kingly rank to the
wise men : " The kings of Tarshish and of the isks
sihall bring presents : the kings of Sheba And Seba
shall offer gifts."
The group of the Holy Farnily is also disposed
with due reverence for treldition. In Bethlehem a
rocky cavern is still pointed out 'aS the birthplace
of the Saviour, and so some suggestion of such
a place belongs to the Conventionalities of the scehe
in art. Connected with the cavern in some way is
always a rustic shelter that seems to suggest the
stable in which the cattle fed. The manger and
two worthy examples of the domestic animals are
always at hand. Traditionally, the ox is regarded
as the symbol of the Jews and the ass as that of
the Gentiles. They Usually appear greatly intei"-
ested in the strange occurrence that breaks in Upon
their Uneventful tranquillity. Back of the Virgin
rises a crumbling structure of masonry that always
bears more or less of a resemblance to a fragment
of an ancient temple. It is emblematic of the pass-
ing of the old dispensation and the coming of the
new, and is traditionally associated with the fol-mer
dwelliiig of Jesse, the fathet- of David, which was
located in Bethlehem. When Joseph appears in
76 Ube art ot tbe TOffisi palace
the scene of the Nativity or Adoration, there will
frequently be found one or two women, without
nimbus, beside the Virgin. The first of these, ac-
cording to tradition, was brought to the scene by
Joseph who went to seek assistance when the Child
was born. The second is Mary Salome, who came
to visit the Virgin at the time of the Nativity. In
neither case were the women able to render assist-
ance, for the birth of the Saviour was in this way
as miraculous as in any other. When Joseph re-
turned with the woman whom he had brought to
help him, they discovered the Virgin engaged in
adoring the new-born Child, a light of dazzling
brilliancy filling the humble shelter. Finding
nothing to do, at length the tired man and the
women dropped to sleep, while the Virgin remained
in her attitude of loving adoration until the arrival
of the shepherds. In the predella to this altar-piece
are three charming little panels, depicting respect-
ively the Nativity, the Flight into Egypt, and the
Presentation in the Temple. The latter is a copy of
the original, which is now in the Louvre.
In the train of the Magi, in this great picture.
Gentile da Fabriano has modestly introduced his
own portrait It is the beardless face, under the
heavy turban, directly behind the younger king.
That Gentile was the pupil of Fra Angelico is the
statement of Vasari, strenuously opposed by other
'C;be Influence ot tbe Clotstec 77
auttiorities, who state that the Dominican, the
younger of the two, was taught by the painter from
Fabriano. A comparison of the two great pictures
that we have studied would seem to suggest that
neither was actually a pupil of the other, but that
each learned something from the work of the other.
The relation of master and pupil seems hardly pos-
sible between man so diametrically divergent in
thought and feeling. Gentile's gorgeous and sump-
tuous work is distinctly " of the earth earthy," and
appealed to the sensuous and splendour-loving ele-
ment in the spirit of his age. Angelico's work, on
the other hand, not one whit behind Gentile's in deli-
cacy of touch and technique and in beauty of adorn-
ment, is simplicity itself, and appealed to the higher
spiritual conceptive faculty. In the long run, the
work of the monk has demonstrated the superior-
ity and permanency of its appeal.
CHAPTER VI
THE SPIRIT OF THE QUATTROCENTO: MASACCIO,
LIPPI, AND BOTTICELLI
In the Third Robrti of the Ttlscah Masters, sur-
roilnded by numerous mediocre paihting:s of latet
years, there stands on ah easel a picture, Number
70, to which we mUst devote a passing- word. It is
Masaccio's " Saint Anna Enthroned with the Virg-ifl
and the Christ Child," dnd !ts painter was onfe of
the ptodigies of the fifteenth century. Bofn ill
1401, he lived to the age of twenty-six ohly, being
enrolled in the Guild of the Master Baintets in
Florence when he Was twehty-^two. During his
short active life, Masaccio blazed forth as an artis-
tic meteor, the painter of real life and of person-
ality. Under the brush of this " Slovenly Tom "
the human figure was at last given a true represen-
tation, with a masterly portrayal of character.
Here in the Academy Gallery, we can only form
a faint idea of his genius, through an inspection of
the altar-piece under consideration, which has suf-
fered much from bad and frequent re-painting. It
ha§ lost a great deal of its originally fine modelling.
7§
JLH Spirit Qt tfte (S^uattrocento 79
This picture was made for the old Church of
Sant' Ambrogio in Florence, connected with the
earliest local convent of Benedictine nuns. The
subject is one of peculiar appropriateness, being the
ancient, gymbolic presentation of the miraculous par-
entage of Ohrist. Saint Anna, the mother of the
Virgin Mary, is shown enthroned, surrounded by
angels. Between her knees sits the Virgin, in whose
lap the Child is held. The grouping is an old con-
ventionality. Much damaged as the picture is, the
wonderful mastery of its original workmanship is
still evident. No such real figures and personalities
as these had ever been created by any earlier artist.
Masaccio died in 1428, a fugitive from his debts,
but his influence on the art of painting, exerted for
so short a time, has been felt to be the strongest
in the Renaissance. To his achievement the
greatest masters of the next two centuries largely
owe theirs.
Masaccio's finest existing works are found in the
frescoes of the Brancacci Chapel in the Church of
the Carmine, in Florence. It must be noted that
they were most unusual productions. Even in their
present damaged condition they bear incontrover-
, tible testimony to the greatness of the genius whose
creation they are.
While Masaccio was at work upon these great
pictures, he was much interested in a certain young
8o tTbe Hrt of tbe "Cimst IPalace
monk who persistently hovered around. This
youthful Brother had been a ward of the Carmelites
to whom the church belonged. He was an orphan
who had been given into their^keeping at a very
early age and whom they had endeavoured to educate
for the priesthood. Finding, however, that ithe little
fellow would not study, and could be persuaded to
do naught but make drawings and caricatures in
his books, they abandoned their efforts at literary
training and afforded him all possible opportunity
to learn to draw well. When he was but fourteen
or fifteen years of age, he became a full-fledged
Frate, known by his own name of Filippo, or more
fully, Fra Filippo Lippi.
When Fra Filippo was barely twenty, Masaccio
had completed the greater part of his frescoes in the
chapel and the young Carmelite had become his
admiring ptipil. While Masaocio's influence was
strongly felt by Fra Filippo, there was also evident
in the early painting of ithe young monk the in-
fluence of both Don Lo-Eenza-Moniaco ^and Fra
Angelico,^jmany of whose works he had carefully
studied. These varied impulses, together with those
which sprang from his own very human and all too
rollicking nature, combined to make of Fra Filippo
a most interesting and unique painter, albeit of an
uncertain and roving disposition.
The elder Cosimo de' Medici found in Fra Filippo
XEbe Spirit of tbe (Quattrocento Si
a talent that pleased the great patron, but he is
also said to have found in the Frate a workman
not easy to manage and control. The story goes
that at one time, requiring Fra Filippo to execute
some special paintings for him, Cosimo locked the
artist in the apartments in his palace where the work
was being done, hoping thus to have the pictures
finished sooner. The ingenious monk, however,
refused to be so jailed, even in luxury, and tied
his bed-clothes together to make a knotted rope,
whereby he descended from a window, and escaped
to ithe street for one of those nightly prowls so
dear to his very worldly heart. But for all Cosimo's
attempts to harness the rover, Fra Filippo liked
and respected him none the less. For Cosimo's wife
the young monk painted an altar-piece, to be placed
in a chapel at the hermitage of Camaldoli. This
picture. Number 79, hangs in the Room of the
Primavera. It presents a graceful, kneeling Ma-
donna, adoring the Child, in a strange, rocky, dusky
landscape. Out of the very tangible heavens above
project the hands of the Almighty, releasing the
white dove of the Spirit that glides on outspread
wings down toward the Child. A boyish Saint
John the Baptist stands at the right. With one
hand he points out a stream of baptismal water that
trickles from the rocks, presenting, at the same time,
a scroll bearing an inscription in Latin : — " Behold
&i UM un ot tbe fum^i palace
the Lattlb of God." Below him, in devout attitude,
is the upper poftioil of the figure of an old monk,
in White, evidently intended for a portrait of San
RofflUaldo, foundef of the Catiialdolesian Ordef.
The picture stood fof a long time in the chapel dedi'
Cited to Saint John the Baptist, for which it was
made, finally being bfougiht thence to the Academy.
It must be femembered that it is a comparatively
early picture from the monkish painter's brush, dis-
playing at once a crudeness and a beauty, the con-
trast between which is very intetesting. T he sbo rt-
necked,_,flatrfaced Child is GhiaraeteriatiG cii (this
artist.
- Anothef pictute of somewhat 'similar feelin|g,
Number 82, also by Lippi, hangs in the Same room.
It is a dusky Nativity,. in which may be noted all
the traditional features that we have previously
described. Th« female figure to the right of the
Virgin will be identified without difficulty, as thfe
Magdalen. The other figures are San Geronimo
(Saint Jerome) in penitence and, below, Sant'
Ilario. The former is a natural " pendant " to
the Magdalen, while the latter, a French saint of
some popularity in Italy, being patron of the city
of Patma, was probably also the private patron of
the donor of the picture. It will be noted in these
pictures, as in many by Fra Filippo Lippi, that the
artist's personal quality of broad, human sympa-
Ube Spirit of tbe (Huatttocento 83
thy has made of his Madonna " a real mother of a
real baby."
In the adjoining Room of PerugiriQ h^ngs the
masterpiece of Fra Filippo, Number 62, the JToro-
natioji of the Virgin, painted in 1447 for the nuns
of Sant' Ambrogio, A deeply sympathetic appre-
ciation on this picture and the personality of it§
painter arb given by Browning in his poem " Fra
Lippo Lippi," from which we quote the bearing
passage :
"... I shall paint
God in the midst, Madonna and her babe.
Ringed by a bowery, flowery angel-brood,
Lilies and vestments and white faces, sweet
As puff on puff of grated orris-root
When ladies crowd to church at midsunimer.
And then i' the front, of course a saint or two —
Saint John, because he saves the Florentines,
Saint Ambrose, who puts down in blaelc and wh^te
The copvent's friends and gives thern a long day,
Apd Job, I must have him there past mistake.
The man of Uz (and Us vvithout the z,
Painters who need his patience.) Well, all these
Secured at their deyotipn, wp shall cojne
Out of a corner when you le^st expect.
As one by a dark stair into a great light.
Music and talking, who but Lippo ! I f —
Mazed, motionless, and moon-struck — I'm the man !
Back I shrink — what is this I see and hear?
I, caught up with my monk's things by mistjike.
My old serge gown and rope that goes all round,
I, in this presence, this pure company!
84 XEbe art of tbe "Cimst palace
Where's a hole, where's a corner for escape?
Then steps a sweet angelic slip of a thing
Forward, puts out a soft palm — ' Not so f ast ! '
— Addresses the celestial presence, 'nay —
He made you and devised you, after all.
Though he's none of you! Could Saint John there, draw —
His camel-hair make up a painting-brush?
We come to brother Lippo for all that,
Iste perfecit opus!' So, all smile —
I shuffle sideways with my blushing face
Under the cover of a hundred wings ...
To some safe bench behind, not letting go
The palm of her, the little lily thing
That spoke the good word for me in the nick . . .
And so all's saved for me, and for the church
A pretty picture gained."
It must be remarked that the poet's faculty of
observation was exercised with some carelessness.
" Madonna and her babe " do not figure together in
this picture. Properly speaking, the Coronation of
the Virgin is a purely devotional subject in sacred
art, and is a type or symbol of the Church Trium-
phant. The mystic scene is laid in Paradise, after
the death of the Virgin on earth, and there the holy
Mother of the Redeemer is received into glory and
crowned as the immortal Queen of Heaven, a great
concourse of patriarchs and saints and angels being
assembled to assist in the ceremony. At the extreme
left of this picture will be recognized the patriarch
Aimbrose, with his mitre and pastoral staff, as
patron of the convent for which the picture was
TLbc Spirit ot tbe (Quattrocento 85
painted ; and on the right, the ascetic John the Bap-
tist, patron of the city of Florence. Beside and
below Saint John is the figure' of the painter-monk,
to whom the Latin scroll directs attention — " he
who did the work." With the exception of Job, who
bears 'his name on his shoulder, the other figures
in the foreground are not easily identified. They
are invested with faint haloes and are doubtless
saintly personages of local importance. The popu-
lar identification of the female figure at the right
of the group, with the children before her, as
Lucrezia Buti, the nun whom the monkish painter
seduced and married, is incorrect. At the time of
the execution of this picture, Lucrezia was but a
child herself. Many of the faces, both of the men
and women, however, seem to be contemporary
portraits. The lilies of Florence are much in evi-
dence among the " angel-brood " gathered under
the rainbow vault of heaven. The two charming
little circular medallions, in the frame above, to-
gether represent the Annunciation.
In the same room hangs a thoroughly typical
Madonna Enthroned, Number 55, by Fra Filippo.
It was brought from the Medici Chapel in the
Church of Santa Croce, and in the personalities of
the attendant saints bears witness to its origin. In
due honour to the Franciscan Order, to which, it will
be remembered, the church belongs, there are in-
86 Zbc art of tbe xafflsi Palace
troduced the figures of Saint Francis on the left,
and Saint Anthony of Padua on the right. In ad-
dition, we have two saints of great local importance,
Saint Cosimo on the left, and Saint Damiano on
the right, the patron saints of the Medici. Saint
Cosimo was the special patron of the head of the
influential family, who was his namesake. Saint
Damiano has nothing directly to do with the Medici,
excepting in so far as he is inseparable from Saint
Cosimo. These two worthies were Arabian Chris-
tians who lived during the third centui-y. They
were brothers, and perfected themselves in the
medical lore of their day, being among the earliest
true medical missionaries, displaying great skill in
the natural healing arts. TJiey were also' workers
of miracles in healing, always relieving suffering
wherever they could and persistently refusing fees
therefor. We find these two saints figuring prom-
inently in Florentine art in the golden days of the
great Medici family. Both their faces and
costumes, in this picture, are in conformity with
the accepted type usually given them in art. The
red robe, trimmed with fur, was the common, dis-
tinguishing garb of the physician throughout
Europe for many centuries. During the Christian
persecutions under the Roman emperor Diocletian,
the brothers suffered martyrdom. After being
miraculously saved from drowning and burning
Ube Spirit ot tbe dluatttocento 87
and stoning, they were finally beheaded. The Vir-
gin and Child in this picture are seated on a fine
marble throne in the centre. They are thoroughly
typical of Lippi's Madonnas.
The predella to this altar-piece. Number 72, is
the work of another artist, Francesco Pesellino, a
Florentine pupil of the Carmelite painter. Two of
the original five panels of this series are now in
the Louvre. Those still in the Academy Gallery
represent respectively the Nativity, the Martyrdom
of Saints Cosimo and Damiano, and a miracle of
Saint Anthony. They are remarkable for the
minuteness of their execution and their close imita-
tion of the style of Fra Filippo. Pesellino was born
in 1422, living only to the age of thirty-five. Lippi
died in 1469.
Fra Filippo's own work in miniature can be well
studied in the unattached predella. Number 86.
This work is one of his typically delightful and
characteristic productions, painted about 1436, for
the sacristy of the Church of the Santo Spirito.
It probably belongs to an altar-piece. Madonna and
Saints, now in the Louvre. The subjects of the
three elegant little panels are as follows : — Saint
Frediano, the Irish Bishop of Lucca, miraculously
diverts the stream of the river Serchio when it
threatens to deluge the city; the Annunciation of
the Death of the Virgin; Saint Augustine.
88 xcbc Hrt Of tbe mffisf iPalace
While Fra Filippo's influence upon Florentine
painting was considerable, he had comparatively few
actual pupils. By far the most famous of these was
Sandro Filipepi, ca lled B otticelli, born in Florence
in 1446. His artistic strength may be estimated
from a consideration of the fact that at the death
of Fra Filippo, Botticelli, then only twenty-two years
of age, was regarded as the best master in Florence.
The artist's early pictures are all reminiscent of the
manner of his master. No examples of his work
during this period are found in the Academy. Dur-
ing this time, however, Bott icelli pain ted many re-
ligious pictures, achieving an enviable reputation
therefor, particularly because of his introduction of
certain fanciful and poetic ideals of his own into
the representation of traditional subjects. He was,
at heart, more enamoured of the old pagan ideals
than of the more m'odern ones of the conventional
Christian art, and his knowledge of classical lore
was unusual. Thus we find his work appeal-
ing largely to the classical taste of the literati of
his day, and he was soon engaged on large
decorative paintings of profane subjects. Perhaps
the most striking of these is his so-called Pri-
mavera, or Allegory of Spring, Number 80, in
the Room of the Primavera. It was painted about
1478, for Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de' Medicij_and
is one of the very earliest paintings of the Renais-
Ube Spirit of tbe (Siuattrocento 89
sancejiealing with a profane or secular subject. Its
composition is variously thought to have been in-
spired by a passage from the " De Rerum Natura "
of Lucretius, or by one from the " Rusticus " or
the " La Giostra " of Politian, or possibly^ by still
another from the " Selve " of Lorenzo de' Medici.
Probably the artist drew his inspiration from all
of these literary sources and even from others. But
whatever may have been the original significance of
the picture, we undoubtedly have in this Allegory of
Spring one of the finest examples of the poetic art
of the late fifteenth century in Italy. By some
critics it is regarded as perhaps the most Ijeautiful
picture in the world.
The central figure of this composition has been
supposed to be a portrait of " La Bella Simonetta,"
the beautiful and fascinating G€noese wife of a
certain intimate friend of the Medici, Marco Ves-
pucci by name. To complicate matters slightly, it
may be stated, in addition, the Simonetta was also
the beloved mistress of Giuliano de' Medici. Giuli-
ano held a great joust in honour of this lady in 1475.
During the following year she died. It has been
thought by Berenson that this picture was painted
to commemorate both the joust and the lady. Be
that as it may, while the central figure in the picture
bears every indication of being the striking present-
ment of a real person, it is yet highly idealized.
90 Ube art of tbc xaffist ©aiace
With imperious gesture, she takes a commanding
part in the tableau. She is the dominating figure
in the group that has gathered in a sacred grove of
orange and myrtle, and may be assumed to imper-
sonate the lovely lady in question under the guise
of the loveliest season of the year. It is the sea-
son of new life and of growth, and hence the fig-
ure of the Spring is strikingly represented as preg-
nant. Overhead wings a chubby, blindfolded Cupid,
bending his bow and aiming a flame-tipped arrow
at the center of the incomparablybeautif ul group
of dancing Graces, pagan deities of all the elegant
arts, whose charm is irresistible. Involuntarily
the old couplet leaps into one's mind :
" In the Spring the young man's fancy
Lightly turns to thoughts of love."
At the extreme left, Hermes, messenger of Ju-
piter and god of the fertility of nature, stands with
winged cap and sandals, light of foot and lithe of
figure, deftly touching with his caduceus the over-
arching branches of the trees. At once they burst
into blossom and ripening fruit. This figure is
supposed to be a portrait of Giuliano de' Medici
himself.
But what of the three strange figures on the
right, in such striking contrast to the lovely
Graces? Cold and gray, with powerful wings and
UDc Spirit of tbc (Siuattroccnto 91
dishevelled hair, with puffed cheeks blowing chilly
blasts, the blustering month of March forces his
way in upon the tranquil scene, swaying the trees
to right and left as he breaks through them.
Shrinking and bedraggled, like a water-nymph, the
month of April escapes from the grasp of March.
She is panting and breathless from her struggle.
March rudely blows upon her upturned face, and
from her parted lips fair blossoms drop into the
arms of May.
" April showers bring forth May flowers."
Proud and queenly, as properly becomes her, May
advances, strewing flowers all along her way, in
very truth calling to mind a striking passage from
the Stanze of Politian :
" She is fair, and fair is her robe,
All painted with flowers, roses and blades of grass."
Few of Botticelli's pictures give us such an inti-
mate knowledge of the mental make-up of the artist
as does the Primavera. It is indeed a profound pic-
ture, aesthetically spiritual as well as beautiful, and
pervaded with an elusive air of suggestive poetry
that bafiles while it charms. Completely decorative,
as well as poetical, it was well fitted to adorn the
great hall of the luxurious and fashionable country
93 JLbc art of tbe Tlimst ipaiace
seat of the Medici at Castello, among the hills some
three miles north of Florence, on the road to Sesto,
for which it was executed and whence it found its
way into the collection of the Academy. Jt is
painted in tempera on wood.
In the same room hangs one of Botticelli's more
conventional pictures, a Coronation of the Virgin,
Number 73, of Jater_ date than the Primavera. In
this composition, the artist has given us a picture
which is perhaps less characteristic of his peculiar
lyric temperament, but not devoid of touches that
indicate it. The scene is handled in a traditional
way, quite different from the presentation of the
same subject by Fra Filippo that we have studied.
Below are earthly saints, witnesses to the celestial
mystery, whose selection it is difficult to explain
with definiteness. They are Saint John the Evan-
gelist, with a long beard and holding an open book ;
Saint Augustine, engaged in penning a Discourse;
Saint Jerome, habited as a cardinal; Saint Eloy of
Noyon, the holy blacksmith, in his bishop's robes.
Above, in the heavens, the Almighty, curiously rep-
resented as wearing a papal tiara, crowns the kneel-
ing Virgin, while around them sweeps an ecstatic
throng of rapt Botticellian angel figures. Despite
much re-painting, the picture is still beautiful in its
dignity. The original predella to this altar-piece is
Number 74, containing five , small panels, all by
TLbc Spirit of tbe (Quattrocento 93
the master, and practically untouched by any other
hand. They are exquisitely delicate and beautiful,
and suggest the original perfection of the picture
above. The central panel represents the Annunci-
ation, while the others depict in_cidents„in the_liyes
of the four great saints above, in proper relative
order. In the first. Saint John, on the isle of
Patmos, writes the Apocalypse. In the second and
' fourth, respectively, are Saint Augustine and Saint
Jerome^ In the fifth is an oft-pictured legend of a
miracle of Saint_Elpy. Goldsmith and blacksmith
by training, this holy craftsman was made Bishop
of Noyon in the seventh century. He accepted the
office and filled it well, never relinquishing the pur-
suit of his artistic vocation, however. Because he
was, himself, a worker, he was able to preach with
power to workers. Notable examples both of his
craftsmanship and his sermons are still preserved.
It is told of him that, at one time, when he was
called upon to shoe a horse, the devil proceeded to
annoy him by taking " possession " of the beast,
which plunged and kicked so furiously that it was
impossible to fit the shoe. The holy smith, recogni-
zing the demoniac interference, calmly cut off the
leg of the horse and quietly fitted and fastened the
shoe to the amputated hoof. When the work was
done, he replaced the leg in position and joined it
whole again by making the sign of the cross over it,
94 ^be art of tbe tlimsi palace
to the wonder and astonishment of the bystanders
and the great discomfiture of Satan. This is the
subject of the fifth panel in the predella. It is
probable that this altar-piece was commissioned by
one of the Florentine guilds of craftsmen whose
patron Saint Eloy was. It will be remembered that
Botticelli, himself, like many a Florentine artist,
was originally a goldsmith. This picture is painted
in oil; on iwoSHT and was probably executed about
1480. ^
Among the pictures by Botticelli to be found in
the Academy, that which ranks next in importance
to the Primavera is an enthroned Madonna, with
saints, Number 85, in the Room of Botticelli. This
is a superb piece of work, also in oil on wood,
painted about 1483, traditional in composition, but
rich in expression and colour. It is interesting not
only as a work of art, but also for its associations.
It was painted for the nuns of Saint Barnabas,
whose church in the Via Guelfa was founded in
1309 to commemorate the great battle of Campal-
dino, fought in 1289 in the Casentino, between the
Guelph and Ghibelline factions. In this conflict
Dante participated, and with the close of it the
Ghibelline faction was crushed.
In this sumptuous painting we find the place of
honour, at the Madonna's right, given to the rugged
figure of Saint Barnabas, the associate and co-
BOTTICELLI.
-MADONNA AND CHILD ENTHRONED WITH SAINTS
AND ANGELS
Ube Spirit of tbe Quattrocento 95
worker of Saint Paul. He holds in his hand, in
addition to the sprig of Olive, the Gospel of Saint
Matthew, from which he preached. Beside him
stands Saint Augustine, engaged, as usual, in " ma-
king notes." Next to the great Latin Doctor, stands
the remarkably fine and subtle figure of Saint Cath-
erine of Alexandria, with her spiked wheel behind
her, as patroness of the convent. In this figure
we recognize the same model that the artist em-
ployed for the Graces in the Primavera. On the
other side of the throne we naturally find the ac-
cepted type of the Florentine patron, the ascetic
Saint John, and back of him another Latin Father,
Saint Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, together with the
Archangel Michael in his black armour, prince and
leader of the Church Militant in Christendom. It
was Saint Ambrose who converted Augustine, then
a brilliant Roman lawyer, to Christianity, in the
fourth century at Milan, When Augustine was
baptized, the hymn known as the " Te Deum " was
used for the first time, being recited responsively by
Ambrose and Augustine as they approached the
altar. These two Church Fathers, therefore, fre-
quently figure together in a devotional picture. Au-
gustine became Bishop of Hippo, a community in
Northern Africa near Carthage, dying there in the
fifth century.
Above the groups of saints are typically beauti-
96 XCbe art of tbe XClf03i palace
ful angel figures, drawing back the rich ermine-
lined curtains of the baldacchino, or canopy, and
holding the emblems of the Crucifixion, the nails
of the Cross and the Crown of Thorns. Their faces
resemble those of the children in the Medici family.
In the centre, upon a beautifully sculptured
marble throne sits a slender and girlish Madonna,
presenting her Child, as it were, to be introduced by
Saint Barnabas and Saint John. Botticelli was a
great student and admirer of Dante and doubtless
thought of the great poet frequently during the exe-
cution of this picture. Upon the tablet that fronts
the gradino of the throne is inscribed the first line
of tlie last canto of the Paradiso:
" O Virgin Mother, Daughter of thy Son."
Above the throne, lining the concave of the niche,
is the cockle shell of the Renaissance, the symbol
of the resurrection, when man's spirit leaves the
body like an outworn shell. It was the emblem
worn by holy pilgrims from the thirteenth century
on, and also, by usage, it becomes in a secondary
way the emblem of the resurrection or Renaissance
of art. The upper portion of the picture, above the
circular medallions, is an extension of the original
panel which was added and painted by another and
later hand. It has not improved the composition.
Another charming set of predella panels by Bot-
"JCbe Spirit of tbe Quattrocento
97
ticelli, in the same room, bears four numbers. They
also oame from the Convent of San Barnaba. Num-
ber 162 depicts the " Vision of Saint Augustine."
According to the legend, the great Church Father
was once walking upon the seashore, absorbed in an
endeavour to grasp the mystery of the Holy Trinity.
Stopping before a child who was pouring buckets
of water from the ocean into a hole he had dug in
the sand, the learned Doctor inquired what he was
trying to do. The child replied that he desired to
put all the ocean into the hole. " Can you
not see that that is impossible ? " returned the Saint.
The Child paused in his work and regarded the
Saint with interest. " Not more so," he replied,
" than for the human brain to solve the mystery of
the Trinity." And with that he vanished from the
sight of the Saint. Number 157 represents the
body of Christ attended by the Holy Women and
others, after the descent from the Cross, a subject
in sacred art usually called a Pieta. Number 161
depicts Salome with the head of John the Baptist.
Number 158 is the death of Saint Augustine.
Botticelli was a hard worker, as his productions
show. During his active life he gathered about
him many pupils whom he greatly loved, and who,
after his death, were destined to carry art to still
greater heights of achievement. They all recipro-
cated his kindly regard, drawn to him by the true
98 7be Htt of tbe TSimsi ipaiace
greatness and worth of his intensely earnest char-
acter, with its rare flashes of rich humour. Among
his pupils the best beloved was doubtless young
Filippino Lippi, son of Fra Filippo and Lucrezia
Buti. His work cannot be adequately seen in the
Academy Gallery. He was ten years younger than
Botticelli, but the master outlived the pupil by six
years. Botticelli died in 1510, at the age of sixty-
three, a tired, broken old man.
CHAPTER VII
GHIRLANDAJO^ VERROCCHIO, AND BARTOLOMMEO
In our discussion of Florentine painting we have
thus far made no mention of a very strong influence
that was at work during the first half of the fif-
teenth century, namely that of the sculptor Qcuia-
tello. He was a contemporary of Fra Angelico,
having been born in 1386, although he outlived the
Dominican by eleven years.
Donatello was very popular with the young ap-
prentices and students of art of his day, and the
work done in his shop in Florence was of conspic-
uous influence upon the later development of many
a fine artist. Among them we might make mention
of Paol6 Ucello (1397-1475), the great technical
innovator and master of linear perspective, and
Domenico Veneziano (circa 1400-1461), both men
of some note whose work cannot be seen in the Acad-
emy. But the combined direct influence of both
of these men, together with the indirect influence
of Donatello himself, were brought to bear upon a
young goldsmith's apprentice, Alesso Baldovinetti
99
loo Zbc Hrt of tbe TIltR3i palace
by name, who was born in 1427 and lived to see
the first precious metal brought from America.
Only a year or two after the death of Fra Filippo
Lippi, a wealthy citizen of Florence undertook the
re-decoration of the Chapel of the Church of the
Trinita, and Cimabue's old altar-piece. Number 102,
of which we have spoken, was removed from the
high altar. To Baldovinetti was given the impor-
tant commission to fresco the walls of the Chapel
and furnish a new altar-piece in which the founders
of the Vallombrosan Order should be honoured.
Accordingly, the large picture of the Holy Trinity,
Number 159, was painted by this artist. In its
present ruinous state it is difficult to appreciate its
original value, as the colour is, in many places,
rubbed off down to the bare ground of the panel.
The kneeling saints are Benedict and Giovanni Gual-
berto. This picture is in the Second Room of the
Tuscan Masters. A much more satisfactory ex-
ample of the work of this painter is found in some
smaller panels in the First Room of Fra Angelico.
They belong to a set, executed largely by pupils of
Fra Angelico, which originally decorated the doors
of the cupboard in the Sacristy of the Church of the
Santissima Annunziata. Only the three that bear
the Number 233 are by Baldovinetti. The subjects
are easily recognized as the Marriage in Cana, the
Baptism of Christ, and the Transfiguration. The
©birlan&ajo loi
composition representing the Baptism in this set
is of special importance as it is the picture whose
treatment of its subject very largely influenced the
design of another interesting presentation of the
same scene by one of Baldovinetti's pupils, Andrea
del Verrocchio.
Before taking up Verrocchio's work, however,
we turn to that of another of Baldovinetti's pupils,
Domenico Ghirlandajo, whose Adoration of the
Shepherds, Number 195, is in the Second Room of
the Tuscan Masters.
Domenico Bigordi, called II Ghirlandajo, the
Garland-maker, was born in 1449, three years later
than Botticelli. Vasari tells us that his popular
name owes its use to the fact that the artist was
another one of those notable Florentine workers in
precious metals, and that he came of a family espe-
cially esteemed for the variety and beauty of the
" garlands," or head ornaments much in vogue
among ithe young girls of the day, that they
designed and made. Domenico, however, cared
more for painting than for the goldsmith's craft.
His development under Baldovinetti's instruction
was so rapid that he soon attained an independent
reputation. It is interesting to note that among his
earliest commissions was one to decorate the family
chapel of Amerigo Vespucci, in tihe Church of
Ognissanti. These decorations contained a likeness
102 Zbc art ot tbe mtnsi ipalace
of the great navigator himself, but were destroyed
by whitewashing in the seventeenth century.
The Adoration in the Academy is one of Ghir-
landajo's finest works. It was painted in 1485 and
shows what a splendid panel painter the artist really
was, although most of his extant works are in
fresco. It is a Vallombrosan picture, painted for
the altar of the Sassetti Chapel in the Church of the
Trinita. In it the artist has combined the main
incidents in the story of the Nativity. Upon the
hillside, in the distance of the upper left-hand
corner of the panel, is shown in miniature the An-
nunciation to the Shepherds. The celestial mes-
senger is seen in the heavens. Along the road that
skirts the base of the hill appears the train of the
Magi. In the main composition the shepherds are
shown again at the manger. The traditional fea-
tures of the scene will be easily recognized despite
the unusual garb in which they are presented. In
common with many another man of culture in the
late fifteenth century, Ghirlandajo was passionately
fond of the Roman antiques that were becoming
increasingly fashionable. In a n^ive way he em-
ploys an old^ Roman sarcophagus as a manger, and
his dilapidated pent-ihouse roof is supported on ele-
gant Roman-Corinthian pillars, while the train of
the Magi is shown passing under an elaborate Ro-
man triumphal arch. In its complete attention to
GHIRLANDAJO. — THE ADORATION OF THE SHEPHERDS
©birlatt^ajo 103
detail, this picture is a typical work of the Renais-
sance.
It is worthy of note, in this connection, that
Ghirlandajo, in his remarkable rendering of archi-
tectural detail, never employed instruments nor re-
sorted to any measurement whatever, relying solely
upon the accuracy of his eye. It is said that at one
time he sketched the Colosseum in Rome, with mi-
nute detail, introducing a single human figure into
the foreground. After the artist's death, other
masters tested the accuracy of the perspective and
proportion of thfe drawing and found them unassail-
ably exact. When we remember that Michelangelo
was an apprentice in the studio of Ghirlandajo, it
is not difficult to understand the wonderful devel-
opment of the young sculptor's power of visuali-
zation upon which we have commented in connection
with our study of his great marble David. It will
be observed also, that the painter had thoroughly
mastered the problems presented by his textures in
this picture; fabric, leather, wood, straw, wool, all
are exquisitely painted. Although the landscape is
a trifle hard and lacking in atmosphere, it is none
the less interesting and worthy of study. The faces
in the main group are admirably painted, particu-
larly those of the shepherds, which are evidently
portraits. The kneeling figure, pointing tO' the
Child^ is^ said to_ be_the portjait _of the art^^^^^
104 Ubc art of tbe xafflsi palace
self. The face of the Virgin is sweet and girlish,
although her attitude and the arrangement of her
drapery are a bit studied. The introduction of
the gold-finch, on the ground near the Child, is
another traditional element in the picture. Origi-
nally, a bird was the artistic symbol of the soul,
although its significance was soon forgotten by
Christian painters, excepting as it was retained in
the dove of the Annunciation and the Baptism, the
special symbol of the Holy Spirit. The smaller
birds of brighter plumage, so frequently seen in
pictures of the Madonna and Child, are comparable
with the buttons at the back of a man's frock coat.
Their original purpose has been long forgotten, but
the tailor continues to affix them to the garment.
Domenico Ghirlandajo died in 1494.
Among the pupils of Alesso Baldovinetti, Andrea
del Verrocchio, born in 1435, was easily the most
able, greatly surpassing even the master himself.
He was a man of broad talent, an investigator and
experimenter in both science and art, the very in-
carnation of the most advanced Florentine spirit of
the middle Renaissance. In point of time, he was
the next really great master of art after Fra Filippo
Lippi, and such was his renown that his shop, like
those of other notable masters, was always well
filled with apprentices and pupils. Verrocchio was
also one of those numerous artists whose original
©btrlanbajo 105
craft was that of the goldsmith, while his talents
included a large mastery in sculpture and in music,
as well as in drawing and painting. It was he who
designed the great equestrian statue of Bartolom-
meo Colleoni, in Venice, one of the most famous
bronzes in the world.
Verrocchio's Baptism of Christ, Number 71, is
one of the most interesting pictures in the Academy.
It hangs in the Room of the Primavera and is an
unfinished work, executed about 1480, for the old
Vallombrosan Monastery of San Salvi near Flor-
ence. Vasari tells us that during the progress of
this work, the master one day left it for a time.
It was his custom frequently to avail himself of
the assistance of his best pupils in the execution
of unimportant details of his paintings, although
the design was usually his own throughout and
was completely drawn in before the real painting
was begun. During the master's absence, on this
particular occasion, one of his youthful apprentices,
with bold assurance, painted in the two charming
figures of kneeling angels at the left. These figures
were done in oil, while the remainder of the picture
is painted in tempera, which latter medium was
the only one ever employed by Verrocchio himself.
Upon the master's return to the work, he was
greatly surprised to see what the lad had done and
was deeply impressed with the excellence of the
io6 Ubc art of tbe mffisi Palace
work, bearing such striking evidence to the greatness
of the genius of the young disciple. Throwing
down his brushes, Verrocchio resolved never to
touch colour again. Already the master's work had
been surpassed by that of the pupil, who, indeed,
was destined to become a veritable master of mas-
ters. His name was Leonardo da Vinci. The sub-
sequent art of Verrocchio is largely confined to the
execution of works of sculpture in . bronze.
Much of the charm of this picture is due to the
spirit of calm composure and reverent and tender
devotion that pervades it. It depicts a scene dis-
tinctly popular among the Florentines, whose patron
saint the Baptist was. Conventional in type, it is
yet far from common in treatment. The unfinished,
gaunt figure of the saint is profoundly expressive
of the typical, contemporary idea of the ascetic fore-
runner of the Christ. As usual, he wears his hair
shirt and carries his long crozier, while from his
left hand there flutters a broad ribbon bearing the
inscription " ECCp AGNIVS DE ". . . Somewhat
more pleasing in presentation is the well-studied
figure of the Saviour, anatomically correct, although
with something of proportion still to be desired.
Truly exquisite in form aiid feature are the kneeling
arjgels. FuU of tender feeling they wait upon their
Lord, reverently holding the garments that He has
laid aside. In conception, exequtipii,and .expression,
VERROCCHIO. — THE BAPTISM OF CHRIST
(Sbirlanbajo 107
in mass and detail, these two delightful figures are
the best ever painted in the studio of Verrocchio.
In the background and in the distant landscape may
be discerned the elements of those wonderful
glimpses of mountain scenery so strikingly charac-
teristic of the more mature work of Leonardo, ex-
emplified in his pictures in the Louvre and in the
National Gallery in London. Verrocchio died in
1488.
Lorenzo di Credi, born in 1459, was a fellow-
pupil with Leonardo in the studio of Verrocchio.
In many respects the work of the two pupils is
strikingly similar in their earlier life, although their
later productions are widely divergent in manner
and spirit. The Academy possesses no complete
work by Leonardo, but in Number 92 we find a
typically charming Nativity by Lorenzo, painted for
the nuns of the Convent of Santa Chiara. The uni-
formly patient and painstaking character of this
artist is evident in all of his work. So careful and
particular was he in everything connected with his
art that he even distilled his own oils and ground
his colours with his own hands, mixing them care-
fully in order on his palette, and never permitting
his servants to raise the slightest dust in his studio
when there was any wet colour exposed there. In
his technical processes, Lorenzo followed Leonardo
closely. He wa§ V^rrogchio's favourite pupil and
io8 Ube art ot tbe xafRsi ipalace
in truth he did his master great credit, lacking
only that gemus that made Leonardo individually
so great. ^
Two pictures in the Room of Botticelli, Num-
bers 84 and 154, of doubtful attribution, now as-
signed to Francesco Botticini (1446-1498), are in-
teresting examples of the combined influences of
Botticelli and Verrocchio. Both paintings represent
the popular subject of the Journey of Tobias, and
are probably votive pictures, painted either upon the
departure of the donor for a foreign country or in
gratitude for deliverance from a disease of the eyes
threatening blindness. The story is a lengthy one,
found in the apocryphal book of Tobit. Briefly re-
counted, the main incidents are these:
Tobit, an old man, stricken with blindness, sent
his son Tobias on a long journey to receive certain
money. Tobias was accompanied by one known to
him as Azarias, who was in reality the Archangel
Raphael. Upon the way, the travellers caught a
fish, and Tobias, directed by his guide and compan-
ion, took out the heart and liver and the gall, put-
ting them up safely and carrying them with him.
When the travellers arrived at their destination,
Tobias met a young heiress, Sarah by name, who
was the daughter of Tobit's own cousin. Accord-
ing to information given by Azarias, she was to
become the bride of Tobias. But the damsel
(Bbirlan&alo 109
was reputed to be held by an evil demon that
strangled all those who would take her to wife.
Instructed by Azarias, Tobias took supper in the
house of his bride-to-be, and afterward threw the
heart and the liver of the fish upon a brazier of
glowing ashes, and " when the devil smelled the
smell, he fled into the uppermost parts of Egypt."
So Tobias returned to his father's house, with
Sarah and Azarias. Upon his arrival, he rubbed
the gall of the fish upon his father's eyes, in-
structed so to do by Azarias, and at once the old
man recovered his sight.
The Journey of Tobias is a subject of frequent
occurrence in Renaissance art. In addition to the
essential figures of Tobias and Raphael, the other
archangels Michael and Gabriel, " and the dog,"
are often introduced.
Cosimo Rosselli was almost contemporary with
Verrocchio during his active years. Born in 1439,
of a long line of artistic ancestry, he shows the
influence of Fra Angelico combined with that of the
master of Leonardo da Vinci, modelling his work
upon theirs " at a respectful distance." Never a
very great painter, he nevertheless produced a few
works worthy of more than passing notice. One
such is Number 52, in the Room of Perugino, an
apotheosis of Santa Barbara, painted for the chapel
dedicated to the saint in the Church of the Annun-
no XLbc art ot tbe JSim^i palace
ziata, upon commission from the Guild of German
Merchants of Florence. In the center of the picture
rises Santa Barbara, trampling upon an armed man
who lies under her feet, a bit of symbolism whose
import is not precisely clear. The figure wears the
armour of an emperor and may be intended to sym-
bolize the " powers of darkness." Santa Barbara
is given the moral support of Saint John the Bap-
tist on the left and Saint Matthew on the right.
As in other pictures that we have studied, graceful
angel figures draw back the curtains of the formal
baldacchino. The work is thoroughly typical of
Rosselli.
Santa Barbara bears the palm of martyrdom and
is accompanied by the representation of a fortified
tower that figures in her legend. She was the
beautiful daughter of a rich Eastern noble, and be-
cause of her unusual personal charm, her doting
father shut her up in a high tower, lest some suitor
for her hand should appear and win her away.
Both father and daughter were pagan, but, despite
his unusual caution, she was eventually converted
to Christianity through the agency of a missionary
disguised as a physician, who also baptized her.
Upon her father's discovery of her conversion, such
was his rage that he would have killed her with
his own hands, but angels bore her away from
the battlements of the tower to a place of conceal-
<5birlanbajo
III
ment. After a vigorous search the infuriated man
again found his daughter and delivered her up to
be tortured. In her new faith, however, the maid
was steadfast, and finally her father carried her
away to a mountain and there beheaded her with
his own sword. This was in the early part of the
fourth century. Santa Barbara's special symbol is
the tower, usually shown with three small windows.
When she made her first announcement of her new
faith to her father she had used these windows as
a typification of the Persons of the Trinity, through
which the soul receives its light. She is regarded
as the special patron of armourers and artillerists.
To Cosimo Rosselli belongs the honour of being
the master of several good painters, among whom
the best was the sensitive and timid lad who was
then called Baccio della Porta, a Tuscan nickname
equivalent to " Bat of the Gate." His real name
was Bartolommeo del Fattorino, and while he
worked in Rosselli's shop he lodged with relatives
who lived hard by one of the city gates, whence the
name given to him by his fellow-apprentices. Ever
of a serious turn of mind, young Baccio delighted
in the companiotjship of men much older than him-
self, always keenly relishing the discourses of a
good preacher. Leaving Rosselli's studio at the age
of seventeen, the young painter's intent study of the
great works of his predecessors and contemporaries
112 Ubc Hrt of tbe Xflffisi ipalace
soon gave him an unusual mastery of his art. Even
as a young man, he was respected and admired for
his character and ability. In art he gave and took,
with equal facility, to and from all the great painters
of his day. Strongly drawn by the eloquence of
Savonarola, Baccio joined the emotional company
of the " piagnoni " or " mourners," recklessly
throwing into the great " bonfires of vanities " all
of his studies and paintings of nude figures that
fell under the condemnation of the great preacher's
invectives hurled against the lasciviousness of the
age. The shock of the troublous times that fol-
lowed, culminating in the tragic death of Savona-
rola, caused Baccio to drop his work and betake him-
self to the monastery of San Marco, where he be-
came a monk, under the name of Fra Bartolommeoi.
Before he retired, however, he executed a remark-
able portrait of Savonarola, painted in the guise
of Saint Peter Martyr, with wounded head, Num-
ber 172, in the Second Room of the Tuscan Mas-
ters. It is a wonderfully strong and characteristic
portrait, painted as a tribute to the memory of what
Savonarola's followers called his martyrdom.
For five or six years, after Fra Bartolommeo
entered the Dominican Order, he could not be per-
suaded again to take up his brushes, and when he
eventually did so, at the earnest solicitation of the
Prior, his first painting was the Vision of Saint
Gbtrlan&ajo 113
Bernard, Number 97. This picture was made in
1507 for the Badia, and has been greatly spoiled
by re-painting in comparatively recent times.
The mystical Vision of Saint Bernard of Clair-
vaux is a scene of remarkable popularity. Despite
the frail health of the great Cistercian, he was an
unremitting worker and preacher. At one time,
according to the legend, when he was engaged in
composing a rapturous homily upon the Blessed
Virgin, he was so weak and ill that he could
scarcely hold his pen. Looking up from his labour,
he beheld the Virgin herself before him, accom-
panied by angels, and her presence comforted and
graciously strengthened him, enabling him to con-
tinue his work with new fervour.
Fra Bartolommeo's picture, representing this
incident, is among his best compositions, although
it shows an unusual carelessness in the matter of
facial beauty and expression, due possibly to the
Frate's preceding years of monastic life. The
grouping of the Virgin and the angels is graceful
and pleasing and that of the saints is simple and
dignified. The figures behind the kneeling, white-
robed Saint Bernard are the young Saint John the
Evangelist and the venerable Saint Benedict. The
Cistercian Order was the most important reformed
branch of the Order of Saint Benedict in northern
and western Europe, having been founded at Cit-
£t4 TCbe Htt of tbe tlfflsi ipalace
eaux, in Ffance, in the eleventh cetitury, and placed
under the e:special protection of the Virgin. Ber-
nard of Qairvaux is the great saint of the Order
and the only member of it who figures to any de-
gree in art.
CHAPTER VIII
SIGNORELLI, PEEUGINO, AND DEL SARTO
A FEW miles to the north of Lake Trasimeno,
upon the shores of which the Roman Consul Fla-
aninius fell into the death-trap prepared for him and
his army by Hannibal, during the Second Punic
War, the loftily-situated little town of Cortona
raises its walls and roofs, thirteen hundred feet
above the old highway. It is one of the most ancient
fortress-cities in Italy, having played an important
part in the history of the early Etruscan Confed-
eracy. During the middle ages, Cortona main-
tained a remarkable degree of freedom, holding
out against the later power of Florence, even, until
the beginning of the fifteenth century. Then came
real civilization, of the kind that Florence knew,
and a great church was built to the honour of San
Domenico. Since the days of Etruria, art in Cor-
tona had slumbered; but there is evidence that at
one time, many centuries ago, the craftsmanship
of its people stood high in the estimation of their
Roman conquerors. Even in the fifteenth century
ii6 Zbc Hrt of tbe TSimn palace
their instinct was not dead. It took but a little
time, and a little practical encouragement, to fan
the lingering spark again into a flame.
In 1441 Luca Signorelli was born in Cortona, a
man of great talent and genius, and of an impetu-
ous temper that made it impossible for him to re-
main long within the narrow limits of his little
town. To Arezzo he went. There were good
painters there, and there he learned the rudiments
of the great art that ultimately was his and that
had its far-reaching influence upon the greater men
of later date. Also he went to Perugia, to learn
more from the Umbrian masters at work there, and
to leave his own indelible impression on their work.
Through all his wanderings, Signorelli made the
study of human anatomy his passion. 'Eventually,
his mastery of the structure of the human frame be-
came so complete that he even ventured to engage
in a bit of creative exaggeration in some of his
work. The delineation of the nude human form in
art became his means of expression. It is natural,
therefore, to find Signorelli's best work in the
realm of fresco, where the space at his command
for the grouping of figures is greatest. Excellent
smaller paintings, however, from his brush, are not
rare. In the Room of Perugino, hangs a fine work.
Number 65, a Crucifixion with the Magdalen. The
painting is on canvas, and was doubtless intended
SiGnocelU, iPerugino, an& Del Sarto 117
for a processional banner or standard. In this
simple but forceful work, we can see the expres-
sion of the great genius whose influence upon Mich-
elangelo was so strong. Restrained and dignified
as the composition is, there is yet evident a con-
centrated power and feeling that is well controlled.
Alone, the Magdalen kneels beside those feet that
she had once anointed. Her dramatic gesture is
in striking contrast to the unanswering stiffness of
the dead Christ. But in the background is the hope-
ful suggestion of the succeeding incident, an active
group engaged in taking down the body of the
Saviour and preparing it for its brief rest in the
tomb. In these figures Signorelli has well dis-
played his characteristic mastery of bodily move-
ment. The picture was brought from the Convent
of Annalena.
From the Church of the Trinita in Cortona comes
the altar-piece, a Madonna with Saints, Number
164, in the same Room. This picture, in part, has
been atrociously re-painted. The mastery of the
forms, however, is still notably preserved. In the
predella, below, the three smaller paintings are in
much better state of preservation. They represent
the Last Supper, Gethsemane, and the Flagellation.
The second one presents a splendid example of
Signorelli's handling of the unified movement of
a crowd.
ii8 TEbe art ot tbe fUmn l^alace
We have mentioned the value of the work of
Signorelli upon the development of the g-enius of
Michelangelo. It also had its strong influence upon
the art of that other great genius of the high
Renaissance, Raphael, both difectly and through
Raphael's master, the Umbrian Pietro VannUcci,
called Perugino. Pietro gained his cognomen
through association with the town of Perugia near
his birthplace of Citta della Pieve. He was born
in 1446, being five years younger than Signorelli,
although he outlived the latter by a year, dying in
1524. When he was nine years old, Pietro was
sent to Perugia as apprentice to a painter of local
fame, a certain Fiorenzo di Lorenzo, from whose
brush we find no work in the 'Academy. In Peru-
gia our artist mastered the essentials of his craft,
including an excellent and practical knowledge of
perspective. From Perugia he wandered to Flor-
ence, to see the work of the great masters there,
and to study under them. Thus he came not only
under the powerful influence of Signorelli but also
of Botticelli, Ghirlandajo, Vertocchio, and later of
Leonardo da Vinci also, as well as Lorenzo di
Credi.
Although like Signorelli, Perugino is found at
his very best in fresco, many of his easel pictures
are fairly representative and good. He was, in
reality, the first Italian artist who successfully mas'-
Stgnorellf, petudtno, an5 S>el Satto 119
tered the new medium of oil, his colours being uni-
formly warm, transparent and golden, and never
turning to that blackness that was the result of
Leonardo's search for light and shadow.
In the Room of Perugino we find the great
picture. Number 57, the Assumption of the Virgin,
from the high altar of the Convent of Vallombrosa.
It is painted in oil on wood, and dates from the
year 1500, as indicated in the inscription at the
bottom :
PETRVS PERVSINVS PINXIT AD MCCCCC
In its sentiment, this picture is one of the noblest
in the Academy. It is extremely characteristic of
Perugino, being a fine example of the artist at his
best in easel work, if due allowance be made for
much smearing with paint and varnish that has re-
sulted from modern attempts at restoration, made
when the picture was brought to the Academy in
1810. It was about the time during which Peru-
gino was at work upon this picture that the young
Raphael became his admiring pupil.
In accord with the regular conventional idea of
the subject, the picture is divided into two parts, —
the heaven above and the earth beneath. The latter
is a soft and beautiful, though plain landscape, a
country of the nature of that in which Perugia is
set. In the foreground stand the saintly witnesses
I20 XLbc Hrt of tbe XUffist palace
to the celestial mystery above, four important per-
sonages, the popular " Guardian Saints of Vallom-
brosa."
The figure at the left, wearing the biretta, is that
of a famous abbot of Vallombrosa, the Cardinal
Saint Bernard degli Uberti, not to be confounded
with Saint Bernard of Clairvaux. Next, toward
the center, stands the characteristic figure of the
founder Saint Giovanni Gualberto. As is usual in
art, he is beardless, and carries a cross and a crutch.
Next, toward the right, is the patriarch Saint Bene-
dict, dignified and venerable, carrying the asperges
or rod for sprinkling holy water, the emblem of the
sanctity and purity that enabled him to overcome
the temptations of Satan. At the extreme right is
the celestial patron and protector, the archangel
Saint Michael. The face of this latter figure is
one that often appears in Perugino's pictures. It is
that of Chiara Fancelli, his wife, whom he married
in 1493. So enamoured of her beauty was 'he, and
so delighted with the problem of devising effective
head-dresses for her, that the model husband fre-
quently spent hours at a time in arranging this im-
portant portion of her toilet with his own hands.
All four of these lower figures are splendid crea-
tions, and are full of character and beauty. As a
rule, Perugino always avoided crowding his figures.
Each has sufficient room to appear distinctly indi-
PERUGINO.
THE ASSUMPTION OF THE VIRGIN
SiQtiorelli, iperugino, an& 2)el Sarto 121
vidual. The figure of the Archangel is one that
the artist often painted, with unvarying pose, and
but little variation in detail of costume. It will be
recognized to be the same as that which appears
in the Pavia triptych in the National Gallery in
London.
The upper portion of this picture also contains
figures that Perugino lazily repeated from some of
his earlier works, notably the angels and seraphs.
The figures of the Virgin and the Almighty, how-
ever, are among the finest that the artist ever pro-
duced, the latter, particularly, presenting a distinctly
fine prototype of Raphael's best work.
This picture presents the purely ideal and devo-
tional phase of its popular subject. Within the al-
mond-shaped aureole or mandorla, surrounded by
cherub-heads, sits the queenly form of the Virgin,
body and soul re-united after her death, at the
command of Christ. She is taking her glorified
place in heaven, supported by adoring angels, bathed
in celestial light and enraptured with celestial har-
mony. Upward she turns her devout gaze into the
higher realms of heaven where stands the majestic
Father, mighty and benignant.
This great picture was painted at the commission
of the Abbot of Vallombrosa, Don Baldassare, and
the General of tlie Vallombrosan Order, Don Biagio
Milanese. The wonderfully fine profile portraits
122 ube art of tbe mmsf IPalace
of these worthies, also by Perugino, hang near by.
The Abbot is Number 241 and the General Num-
ber 242. These two heads probably formed part
of the predella of the great altar-pieoe, being placed
below and on either side, in a position gazing up
at the Virgin. So delicately modelled and finished
are these faces that by some critics they have
been attributed to Raphael. Perugino, however, was
fully capable of producing such work, as is shown
by his success in other portraits found elsewhere.
Two good but very severe and somewhat unpleas-
ing pictures by Perugino are found in Numbers 53
and 56. The former represents Christ in Geth-
semane and the latter the Deposition. Both are
conventional and cold, lacking in human feeling,
but not without a certain notable dignity. They
were painted for the Convent of San Giusto alle
Mura, outside the Porta a Pinti, being removed
therefrom when the convent was suppressed in
1668.
The main figures in the picture of Christ in
Gethsemane are grouped in the simplest form of
pyramidal composition. They are easy and grace-
ful in pose and, taken individually, are excellent.
Bald conventionality in the grouping of all the fig-
ures, however, has largely spxDiled the sentiment
of the picture. We cannot help the feeling that the
angel with the chalice is running rather than flying.
Sisnorellf, iE>erttgfno, anb 2)el Sarto 123
In this particular, this figure is comparable with
those already noticed at either side of the Almighty
in the Assumption. The inadequate and crudely
symbolic mount upon which the Saviour kneels is
almost ridiculous. We know that the scene should
be shrouded in the darkness of night rather than
presented in broad day. In the face of the evident
ability of the artist, these primitive conceptions
seem unpardonable. Doubtless, however, Perugino
had his orders in the making of these pictures, and
utilized these simple devices for the purpose of
producing a pseudo-archaistic effect. The small fig-
ures of Judas with the money-bag, and the Jewish
priests and Roman soldiers, are worthy of close in-
spection. Notably characteristic are the thin-foli-
aged trees that were so frequently employed by
Perugino to aid in the suggestion of atmosphere.
Very dainty is the landscape background.
In the Deposition, Number 56, the same general
characteristics are noticed. The composition is
stately and dignified. Stiffly the body of Christ
rests upon the knees of the Virgin, further sup-
ported by John the Evangelist and the Magdalen.
The other figures are Joseph of Arimathea and
Nicodemus. In the drawing of the pillars and
arches of the portico in the background, the artist
has well displayed his excellent knowledge of per-
spective.
124 Ubc Hrt of tbe Taffisi ipalace
Vasari comments upon the cracking of the paint
in the shadows of these two pictures, saying that
Perugino painted them in oil, a medium in the
handling of which he had but little experience. As
a consequence, he added the second coat of paint
before the first one was thoroughly dry, with the
naturally disastrous result.
It is worthy of note, at this point, that the great
secret of the brilliancy and permanency of the colour
work of the old masters is found in two important
requirements of their craft. Their materials were
pure and carefully prepared, and their work was re-
peatedly exposed to bright sunlight during the
painting, each layer of colour being thoroughly
dried and freed from oil before the next was added.
In the Room of the Primavera is a simple and
lovely Crucifixion by Perugino, Number 78. This
picture much resembles the artist's great fresco of
the same subject in Santa Maria Maddalena dei
Pazzi. It was painted for the Convent of San
Girolamo delle Poverine.
In the Room of Botticelli hangs an interesting
picture by Filippino Lippi and Perugino. It is a
Descent from the Cross, Number 98. This picture
was begun in 1504 by Filippino. After only a brief
period of work upon the panel, the artist was at-
tacked by a fatal malady of the throat, and died in
a few days. While the entire composition is Filip-
Sianorelli, IPerugino, ant> S>el Sarto 125
pino's, he painted only the fainting Virgin and the
man on the ladder at the right of the picture. The
work was commissioned by the Servite Monks of
Florence for the high altar of the Church of the
Annunziata. Upon the death of Filippino, the
Monks turned to Perugino for the completion of
the picture. He finished the work with remarkable
■success. It is rich in colour and full of movement.
Especially fine is the venerable figure of Joseph of
Arimathea at the top of the ladder at the left.
Out of the higher Renaissance a very few pictures
have found their way into the Academy. Particu-
larly notable are those by the great Florentine
Andrea del Sarto, pupil of Piero di Cosimo, and
student of the work of Masaccio, Fra Bartolommeo
and Michelangelo. Andrea was born in i486 and
died in 1531. His work is seen to better advantage
in the Uffizi, in which connection we will comment
more fully upon the man and his training. The
pictures from his brush that hang in the Academy
were brought, for the most part, from Vallombrosa.
They are placed in and near the room of the Pri-
mavera.
Number 76, by Andrea, is a picture made by
joining two wings of an altar-piece, each containing
two saints. The figures are easily identified as
Saint John the Baptist, the Cardinal Saint Bernardo
■degli Uberti, the Archangel Michael, and Saint Gio-
YSPni Gualb^rto. The altar-piece was p9.inted in
J5?8, pnly three years before the death of the artist,
fgr the chapel called " H Paradisino " at Vallom-
brosa, The Archangel is a. striking portrait of the
artist's faithless wife, Lucrezia del Fade, In con-
nection with the study of Andrea's work, one must
needs know something of the character of this ill-
matched pair, and the generous love and unfailing
regard that the husband held for the unworthy wife
to the last. Browning's poem, " Andrea del Sarto,"
presents a vivid picture of the two.
In the original altar-piece, an image of the Virgin
stood between the two wings. It was not so high
as the wings and was so placed as to leave a space
bel'Qw which was filled with the little picture of two
angcl-children, "putti," Number 6i, hanging in the
adjacent room. These youngsters are most charm-
ing and irresistible- Under the picture of the four
Saints, is the predella of the altar-piece, Number 77,
minus one of the original panels. The four little
pictures that remain represent the Archangel wres-
tling with Satan, the Death of Giovanni Gualberto,
the Death of John the Baptist, and the Death of
Bernardo degli Uberti. All are worthy of close
study and inspection,
These few pictures from the brush of the " fault-
less painter " will serve to suggest the glory of the
great works of the High Renaissance that are pre-
ANDREA DEL SARTO. — FOUR SAINTS
Signorelli, iPerugtno, an& 2)el Sarto 127
served in the Gallery of the Uffizi. They are mate-
rially different from most of the other pictures in
the Academy, being finer in many important re-
spects. The High Renaissance is a period of per-
fect draftsmanship, rich and luminous colour, won-
derful genius and great creative ability. The name
of Andrea del Sarto was one of the greatest that
the period knew.
We close the study of the important pictures in
this interesting gallery of the Accademia with the
feeling that they have given us an excellent prepa-
ration for our deeper appreciation of the great pic-
tures in the greater gallery of the Uffizi.
CHAPTER IX
THE MUSEUM OF SAN MARCO : THE FRESCOES OF FRA
ANGELICO
In the year 1170 there was bom into a noble
and illustrious family, in the kingdom of Castile, a
child who was destined to become one of the great-
est religious leaders of the Christian world. Ac-
cording to the old legend, before this remarkable
child was born, his mother dreamed that she had
given birth to a dog whose coat was black and white
and who carried in his mouth a Hammg torch. The
child proved to be an energetic and well-favoured
boy., Upon the occasion of his baptism, as he was
being held at the font by his godmother, a miracu-
lous sign of divine approval was given him, in the
apparition of a brilliant and wonderful star that
descended from heaven and placed itself upon his
brow. The child was named Domingo, and later
became known throughout Christendom, as Domin-
ique in France, Domenico in Italy, and DominicTc
in England.
The boy early displayed a strong religious charac-
ter and bent, and was sent to Valencia, there to
128
XTbe /IDuseum of San flOarco 129
study theology at the university. When he was
about twenty years of age he became a canon of the
Order of Saint Augustine, and at the age of about
thirty he was sent upon a state mission to France.
Being obliged to pass through the province known
as Languedoc, at that time the center of the
strength of the dissenting Albigenses, Dominick
was roused to preach against the movement that
threatened the unity of the Church. These some-
what unsuccessful efforts to reclaim the heretics
were followed by a crusade of extermination
against them which developed into one of the
bloodiest wars in history.
Shortly thereafter, Dominick gathered to him-
self a number of churchmen who adopted the life
of penitents and travelled about from place to place
in the Vaudois, preaching and exhorting the peo-
ple to hold fast to the Church. Out of this asso-
ciation sprang the great Dominican order, con-
firmed by Pope Honorius some years later, in 12 16,
when Dominick and Francis of Assisi met in
Rome. For several years after the confirmation of
his Order, Dominick zealously occupied himself in
founding convents in all the principal centers of
European civilization, and soon the Order of the
Preaching Friars was well-established and engaged
in wide-spread activity.
The habit of the Dominicans consists of a gown
130 TTbe Htt of tbe xnmn palace
of white wool, fastened around the waist with a
white girdle. Over this gown hangs a long piece
of cloth known as the scapular. It is like a long
apron, depending from the neck almost to the feet,
both before and behind. The over-garment is a
black cloak with a hood attached. Saint Dominick
always wears the habit, when represented in art.
Frequently he bears in one hand a book and in the
other a lily. A small red star is usually seen on
his forehead or just above his head. He is some-
times accompanied by the dog with the flaming
torch in his mouth.
In person, Saint Dominick is described, by one of
his immediate disciples, as of moderate stature and
build, with fair complexion, regular features, and
closei-shaven beard. He always bore a placid ex-
pression and had keen and penetrating blue eyes.
His hands were long and beautifully formed. The
remarkable success of his Order in its early years
was due in large measure to Dominick's engaging
personality and almost supernatural personal mag-
netism. When Dominick and Francis of Assisi
met in Rome, the strength of the personal charac-
ter of each was notable. Had either been less in-
dividual, a great union between their Orders might
haye been accomplished then and there. As it was,
each recognized instinctively the impossibility of
union. They embraced and parted, each to carry
Zbc /©useum of San /iDarco 131
on his own labours, and to lead his followers in his
own way. Dominick died in Bologna in the year
122 1.
The church and monastery of San Marco in
Florence dates originally from the thirteenth cen-
tury. At that time it belonged to a community of
Vallombrosan monks known as the " Salvestrini."
At the beginning of the fifteenth century, this mon-
astery was suppressed by Pope Martin V and its
buildings given to the Dominican Order. Here
were then established the monks who had formerly
occupied the monastery of San Domenico near
Fiesole, from which they had been driven a few
years before, and with them came Fra Angelico da
Fiesole and his brother Fra Benedetto. The Prior
of the community, at that time, was the pious Saint
Antonino. In 1490 the great preacher Savonarola
became Prior of San Marco and in 1500 Fra Barto-
lommeo joined the Order. During the greater part
of the fifteenth century the church and convent of
San Marco enjoyed the special favour of the Medici,
notably of Cosimo the Flder, who practically re-
constructed the entire group of buildings for the
Dominicans, and also of Lorenzo the Magnificent.
To-day, the church holds little that is of interest
to the lover of art, but the monastery is rich in
works and memorials of Fra Angelico, Fra Barto-
lommeo. Saint Antonino and Savonarola. The im-
132 trbe Hrt ot tbc mmsi palace
press of the Medici is noticeable throughout the
buildings. The monastery is now secularized and
established as the Museum of San Marco, fronting
upon the Piazza di San Marco, only a few steps
from the Academy. This intensely interesting mu-
seum should be visited after the Academy and be-
fore the Uffizi.
Overlooking the fact that the tonsured monks of
old have given place to the modern tourist and the
student of art, and the cloisters and cells are bare
of their furnishings, one easily feels that in San
Marco he breathes the quiet air of a world that is
different from that which he left behind him as he
passed within the entrance. Almoist instinctively,
one stands at the corner of the first cloister, with its
little garden, and its patdies of brilliant sunlight
shining between the columns of the arcade, wait-
ing for a figure in black and white to step forward
with hospitable greeting. At the far end of the
arcade that stretches directly forward, upon the
wall of the cloister, is a large crucifix with a figure
kneeling at the foot of the cross. The figure is
robed in black and white. Will it rise? One feels
involuntarily drawn toward the scene. There is
a little red star over the head of the kneeling figure.
It is Saint Dominick, and his arms lovingly embrace
the cross, down which the blood of the Saviour
trickles in thread-like streams. The picture is one
lEbe /iBuseum ot San flDarco 133
of the finest frescoes from the brush of Fra An-
gelico. In its simple, loving, beautiful piety, it com-
mands attention and will well repay a prolonged
study. The subject and its treatment is often re-
peated, with some variations, elsewhere on the walls
of the cells above the cloister. It will be noted that
Fra Angelico, the panel painter, and Fra Angelico,
the fresco painter, seem like men of common tem-
perament but different mood. It was the same hand
that held the brush, but in his fresco work Fra An-
gelico is immeasurably greater as an artist than he
is in his panels and easel pictures. Nowhere in the
world can his real greatness be seen and studied to
such advantage as in San Marco.
Over the door of the Sacristy, directly to the left
of the Crucifixion, is a fresco by Fra Angelico, rep-
resenting the great Dominican Saint Peter Martyr,
with palm, and book, and wounded head, and finger
on lip imposing silence. This saint is ranked by
the Order as next in importance to the great patri-
arch Saint Dominick. He was born at Verona in
the year 1205. At the age of fifteen, he became an
earnest disciple of Saint Dominick and took the
habit of his Order. He was a man of severe and un-
relenting character, intolerantly zealous in his pur-
suit of heretics, being appointed Inquisitor-General
under Pope Honorius III. Peter met his death at
the hands of assassins, hireid by some Venetian
134 Ubc art ot tbc XIlfBai palace
nobles whom he denounced. He was waylaid upon
the road from Como to Milan, and struck down by
a blow with an axe upon the head. This saint,
in whose case the title of Martyr has become an
accepted surname, represents in art the Sanctity of
the Dominican Order. He met his martyrdom in
1252, being canonized by Pope Innocent IV in the
following year.
Around the cloister, in various places, are inter-
esting frescoes by Bernardo Poccetti (i 543-1612)
and assistants, depicting scenes from the life of
Saint Antonino. As decorations they are of minor
value, but owe their chief claim to the attention of
the student to the fact that they show many of the
buildings in Florence as they stood during the early
years of the seventeenth century.
Over the door of the Capitolo, or Chapter House,
is another single figure by Fra Angelico, in a bad
state of preservation. It is Saint Dominick with
a book and a scourge, symbolic of the Discipline
of the Order.
Over the door of the Large Refectory is a Pieta,
also by Fra Angelico, of merely passing excellence.^
Over the door of the Foresteria, or lodging for
strangers, is a very beautiful group by Fra An-
gelico, representing Christ as a Pilgrim being re-
ceived by two Dominican Brothers, a picture sym-
bolic of the Hospitality of the Order.
Ube /Duseum of San /iDarco 135
Over a door near the entrance to tiie cloister is
another single figure by Fra Angelico, badly re-
painted. It represents Saint Thomas Aquinas, the
great Dominican doctor of theology. He .was born
in Calabria, of a noble family, in the year 1224, and
died in 1274. He represents in art the Learning
of the Dominican Order, and is frequently shown
with one or more books, a pen or inkhorn, a radi-
ant sun on his breast, and with the sacramental
cup. He was the composer of the Sacramental
Office that is still in use.
In the Foresteria are placed a number of pictures
of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, only one
of which is worthy of our present notice. Number
2 1 is an Annunciation of doubtful attribution, prob-
ably by a pupil of Fra Filippo Lippi. The figure
of the yirgin is beautiful and full of dignity.
In the Large Refectory of the monastery, entered
from the eastern corner of the cloister, is an impor-
tant fresco by Giovantonio Sogliani (died 1530),
and Fra Bartolommeo. It is a Cenacolo, or Supper,
called "La Provvidenza," painted in 1536. The
subject of the picture is an incident taken from the
life of Saint Dominick. At one time, so the legend
runs, the saint was in the Refectory of his monas-
tery with the brethren of his Order, and they had
no bread. The saint prayed to God for the neces-
sary food and forthwith there appeared two angels
136 Ube art of tbc mmsi palace
who brougiht loaves in plenty. In this painting,
Sogliani has introduced many portraits of monks
who were in San Marco at the time when the work
was done. The painting was commissioned by a
certain serving friar of the community whose por-
trait, according to Vasari, is introduced in the
standing figure at the right of the composition.
The figure in the center is intended for Saint Dom-
inick, himself. The arrangement of the group is
one that is traditional in representations of the
Lord's Last Supper. The Crucifixion and the
figures of Saint Antonino, the Virgin, Saint John,
and Saint Catherine of Siena, that appear in the
upper part of this composition, are all by Fra Bar-
tolommeo. They are excellently drawn and well
arranged, worthy of comparison with anything
ever done by him. Despite the exact symmetry of
the composition, it is easy and graceful. There is
sufficient variety in the attitudes' of its various
figures to avoid what might easily have been an
effect of dull monotony. In the distant landscape
behind the Crucifixion is a charming view of the
monastery.
In the Chapter House is a large fresco of the
Crucifixion with various saints, painted by Fra An-
gelico. This is one of his greatest works and is
by some critics considered his masterpiece. It was
commissioned by Cosimo de Medici, the Elder,
Ube flDuseum of San /»arco 137
about the year 1441. Originally, the sky was
painted in with the use of much genuine ultra-
marine, but in later periods, when this colour was
rare and expensive, it was removed, and in its
place now appears a sky of an unpleasant and dull
red tint.
Even the most casual study of this important
picture will reveal the deep purpose of its painter.
It is much more than a mere Crucifixion. It is a
devotional picture of large meaning, atn expression
of the love and adoration given to the Crucified
Saviour by the monastic Orders in general, and
particularly by the Dominican Order, in its monas-
tery of San Marco in the great city of Florence, as
well as by the family of the Medici, especially rep-
resented by its greatest members, Cosimo and Lo-
renzo.
In the upper part of the composition appear the
three crosses bearing the figures of Christ in the
center and the malefactors left and right. Around
the head of the one on the left is a halo of golden
rays, indicating that he is the repentant sinner, the
blessed one to whom Christ promised that he should
that day be with Him in paradise. On the right is
the unrepentant one, writhing in agony, dark and
low-browed, snarling his mockery and derision at
the Saviour. The three figures are characterized
with deep feeling. The skull at the foot of the
ijs Hbe mt of tbe mfflsf Palace
Saviour's cfoss is a traditional refefence to the
name of the hill of the Crucifixion. It will be re-
membered that the spot was called Golgotha:- —
" the place of the skull." Near the foot of the
central cross is the conventional group of the three
Maries and the apostle John. The Virgin swoons,
and the othet-s tenderly and Sorrowfully support
her. The kneeling one in this grdup, with the long
hair, is Mary Magdalen. The forlfis and particu-
larly the faces of these figures are delicate and
beautiful beyond description. Indeed, thefe is not
a single face in the whole painting that is not a
genuine masterpiece of art, carefully painted and
full of the finest feding and expression. In this
respect, no other work of Fra Angelico can begin
to Compare with this.
At the foot of the cross of the repentant sinner,
with suggestive contiguity, stands Saitlt John the
Baptist, patron of the city of Florence. Near him
kneels Saint Mark the Evangelist, patron of the
mionastery. Back of hihi, in his rich deacon's mbeS
and in an attitude of devotion, stands Saint Laur-
ence, patron and name saint of Loretizo de' Medici.
He is recognized by his special attribute, the grid-
iron, that stands beside him. Laurence lived in
Rome during the third century and was archdeacon
to the bishop Sixtus II. Me was subjected to
martyrdom by the pagan prefect of Rome, being
Ubc /iDttseum of San /iDarco 139
broiled alive on a large grid constructed for the
purpose.
At the extreme left of the composition are the
companion saints, Cosimo and Damian, patrons of
the Medici. Saint Cosimo faces the Saviour in
an attitude of adoration, while Saint Damian, pres-
ent only because of his inseparable relation to Saint
Cosimo, turns his back upon the scene and buries
his face in his hands in grief.
The large group on the right comprises the
founders and patriarchs of the great monastic orders
represented by communities in and near Florence.
It is largely a complimentary group, but contains
a number of most excellent and beautiful figures,
among whom the Dominican Order is well repre-
sented. Foremost in the group, nearest the center
of the picture, kneels Saint Dominick himself, with
the red star over his brow, habited in black and
white. His face is one of the best in the group.
Behind him, habited as a bishop, stands Saint Al-
bert of Vercelli, founder of the Carmelite Order, to
which Fra Filippo Lippi belonged. In giving this
prominent place to the great Carmelite, Fra Angel-
ico paid a delicate but unmistakable professional
compliment to his brother painter, who was at the
height of his fame when this fresco was executed.
Next in order, kneeling, with his cardinal's hat
before him, is the ascetic Saint Jerome, patriarch
I40 TLbc Hrt o£ tbe mffisi Palace
of moriasticism. His is another fine face. Standing
behind him, with pasitoral staff, book and pen, is
the venerable Saint Augustine. Kneeling, next,
is Saint Francis of Assisi, with rays of golden
light streaming from his stigmata. Behind him,
in a black habit, the original ooJour worn by his
Order, stands Saint Benedict, carrying the asperges,
while near him are 'the founders of three great
reformed Benedictine Orders : kneeling before him.
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, founder of the Cister-
cian Order, clasping a book to his breast; Saint
Giovanni Gualberto, founder of the Vallombrosan
Order, also kneeling, in the foreground, bathed in
tears, doubtless a reference to that time when Gio-
vanni Gualberto knelt in tears before the great
Crucifix in San Miniato; and back of him. Saint
Romualdo, founder of the Camaldolesan Order,
standing, in a white habit, and leaning on his
crutdi. At the extreme right of the group are two
important Dominicans, Saint Thomas Aquinas,
standing, and Saint Peter Martyr, kneeling.
In the border at the bottom of the picture is a
frieze composed of medallion portraits of " many
notable ecclesiastics who were members of the Do-
minican Order. Vasari tells us that these portraits,
all of which are identified by the inscriptions they
bear, are quite authentic. The successive medal-
lions are connected by a symbolic tree device that
Ube /iDuseum of San ilDarco 141
originates in the central one in which the portrait
of Saint Dominick appears. In the semi-circular
border that surrounds the rest of the picture are
beautifully ornamented panels separated by figures
of the prophets with inscribed scrolls.
It was into this Chapter Room that visitors were
shown to await the coming of the one with whom
they desired to speak. No more impressive picture
could have been designed for such a place. It is
worthy of remark that this room was the one se-
lected by George Eliot, in her novel " Romola,"
as the scene of the first meeting between Romola
and Savonarola, when Romola went to San Marco
to see her dying brother.
Back of the Chapter House is located the Small
Refectory, in which is found an interesting fresco
of the Last Supper by Ghirlandajo. It is in an
excellent state of preservation and is one of the
artist's most successful works. In the composi-
tion of this picture, Ghirlandajo skilfully carried
out the arched structure of the room into the up-
per part of his painting, producing a most effective
semblance of continued vaulting, in the openings of
which appear realistic trees and birds. The Saviour
and the Twelve are disposed about the table in a
manner thoroughly in accord with early tradition,
John actually leaning over on the breast of Jasus,
and Judas seated alone on the opposite side of the
142 Ube Hrt of tbe "ClfBsf palace
table. Judas is the only one of the twelve not in-
veisted with a nimbus. In all of its many details,
this picture is most carefully executed. The draw-
ing is good, the colouring harmonious, the textures
convincing; and while the action is somewhat stifif
and restrained, it makes up in dignity what it lacks
in dramatic force. The work is eminently char-
acteristic of Ghirlandajo's formal decorative pag-
eantry.
Upon the upper floor of the monastery are found
the cells of the monks. Most of these tiny apart-
ments are decorated with frescoes by Fra Angelico
and his brother, Fra Benedetto. They were begun
in 1436, when the brothers had teen monks for
about thirty years. The latest of these pictures
dates from about 1445, at which time Fra Angelico
was called to Rome, by Pope Nicholas V, to decor-
ate the walls of the Chapel of St. Stephen in the
Vatican.
Directly opposite the head of the stairway, by
which one ascends to the cell floor, is one of Fra
Angelico's most lovely creations, a fresco of the
Annunciation. A charming figure of the Virgin
is seated upon a stool under a typical Florentine
loggia, her hands crossed on her breast. Inclining
slightly forward, she listens with rapt attention to
the pronouncement of the rainbow-winged angel
who bends before her in an attitude of deference
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Ube /Duscum ot San /©arco 143
and adoration. To the left is a delightful glittipse
of aft attractive garden. At the bottom of the pic-
ture runs a warning inscription in Latin : " When
thou shalt have come before the image of the pufe
Virgin, take heed lest throug'h thy neglect the Ave
remain unsaid." The warning Seems not without
reason, for so beautiful is this pietufe and such is
its general charm, that one looking upon it might
well neglect to think of anything save Its simple
loveliness.
Hefe and there, upon the walls of the corridors
and in the Cells are the frescoes already mentioned.
They are of various degrees of excellence, all exe-
cuted in a spirit of deep reverence. We note the
most important.
In Cell VI is one of the best, representing the
Transfiguration. In an almond-formed blaze of
light, upon a rocky prominence, stands the Christ
with hands out-stretched in benediction. Below
kneel Saint Peter, Saint James and Saint John. At
the extreme edges of the picture stand Saint Domi-
nick and Saint Catherine of Siena. Two fine heads
of prophets fill the space above these latter figures.
The Conception of the scene is simple, its composi-
tion graceful, and its colouring soft and harmoni-
ous.
Another excellent work, of substantially similar
character, is the Coronation of the Virgin, with
144 ^be Hrt of tbe xafHsi PalaCe
Saints Dominick, Benedict, Thomas, Francis, Peter
Martyr, and Paul, in Cell IX. The figures of the
Christ and of the Virgin, here, both in white, are
splendid in their beauty and dignity.
Cells XII, XIII, and XIV, are those that were
occupied by Savonarola. In Cell XII is a crude but
interesting painting of an execution (that of Sa-
vonarola?) in the Piazza Signoria. In Cell XIII is
a wonderfully striking portrait of the great Domin-
ican reformer, by Fra Bartolommeo.
On the wall between Cells XXV and XXVI is a
fine Madonna Enthroned with Saints, by Fra An-
gelico. In this composition the Virgin sits upon a
throne of marble with the Child (still a diminutive
adult) on her knee. The saints are Mark, Domi-
nick, Cosimo, Damian, Paul, Thomas Aquinas, Lau-
rence, and Peter Martyr.
In Cell XXXIII is a small altar-piece, painted
in oil on wood, of miniature execution and wonder-
ful beauty. It is usually called the " Madonna of
the Star," because of the star upon the head of
the Virgin, who is the central figure. It is by Fra
Angelico, and was formerly placed in the Sacristy
of the Church of Santa Maria Novella. The figure
of the Virgin, and those of the various saints and
angels disposed around her, are splendid examples
of the fine miniature work of which Fra Angelico
was so thoroughly capable. Another similar paint-
Ul)c /FDuseum of San /©arco 145
ing, in the same Cell, the inner apartment, is the
Coronation of the Virgin. In general delicacy this
is hardly up to the standard of execution of Fra
Angelico's own work and is probably the work of
Fra Benedetto. It was also originally in the Sac-
risty of Santa Maria Novella.
A third small altar-piece or tabernacle, of simi-
lar nature, from the same Sacristy is in Cell
XXXIV. It is from Fra Angelico's own brush and
is more beautifully finished than either of the
others, depicting the Annunciation and the Adora-
tion of the Magi, in tempera on wood. Each scene
is rendered in a manner comparable with the finest
kind of vellum illumination, many excellent ex-
amples of which latter art are to be seen in the
display cases in the great library of the monastery.
Cell XXXVIII was set aside for the use of
Cosimo de' Medici the Elder and was frequently
occupied by him. In the inner apartment is an ad-
mirable portrait of the great leader by Pontormo,
Taken all in all, it may truly be said that a proper
idea of the art of Fra Angelico can be gained in no
place so well as in his own old monastery of San
Marco. Here, in the cloisters and corridors and
apartments occupied by his brother monks, his pecu-
liar piety and genius found its free and unfettered
opportunity for expression. In his own sphere of
art, Fra Angelico has no peer.
CHAPTER X
THE HISTORY OF THE UFFIZI GALLERY
From the south-eastern corner of the Piazza,
della Signoria, opening between the Loggia dei
Lanzi and the Palazzo Vecchio, a long, narrow
court extends to the Arno. In early times, this
court was a street, closely lined with huddled
structures of varied description, among them being
the old Church of San Piero Scheraggio.
When, in 1537, the dissolute Duke Alessandro
dei Medici was assassinated, Cosimo I succeeded to
the throne of Florence, and a new and liberal era
dawned on the government of the city. While this
ruler was by no means free from the dissipation
and immorality of his time, his many excellent
qualities won for him the title of The Great. He
was elevated to the dignified rank of Grand Duke,
in 1569, by Pope Pius V.
Cosimo I ruled Florence for thirty-seven years.
During the latter half of 'his reign, desiring a new
palace in which might be housed all the govern-
ment offices, Cosimo commissioned Vasari to con-
struct such an edifice closely adjoining the Palazzo
146
Zbc "fcistors of tbe xaffisi (Bailers 147
Vecchio. The work was begun in 1560. The
structures that lined the narrow street that has
been mentioned were partially demolished and re-
modelled. Over them Vasari raised the Palazzo
degli Uffizi, originally housing the city tribunal,
archives, treasury, library, and mint.
Vasari died in 1574, before the work was fin-
ished, but his original designs were completely
carried out by Alfonso Parigi in 1580. The build-
ing, a fine example of dignified Renaissance archi-
tecture, encloses both sides and one end of the long
court, with the open end toward the Palazzo Vec-
chio. The ground floor possesses a well designed
arcade, extending the full length of the building,
around the court, frequently spoken of as the Loggie
degli Uffizi. The lower part of the edifice now con-
tains the Post Office, the Central Depository of the
Archives of Tuscany, and the famous Biblioteca
Nazionale, including the Palatine and Magliabec-
chian Libraries.
The upper floor originally consisted of a hand-
some open loggia or terrace. Under the art-loving
Francesco I, successor to Cosimo the Great, the
eastern wing of this terrace was closed in by the
architect Bernardo Buontalenti, and transformed
into a long corridor with adjoining rooms, practi-
cally as it now stands. In the accommodation thus
provided was placed the collection of pictures be-
148 XTbe Hrt of tbe mttlsi IPalace
longing to the Medici family. These priceless
works of art were at this time first brought together
by Francesco, many of them having previously been
scattered through the numerous palaces and villas
owned by his princely ancestors in and near Flor-
ience. He cared much more for art than he did
for government and statecraft. Under him, also,
was begun the covered passage connecting t he
Palace of the TTfFi^i- j»Mtjn th^<- "^ tli^ Pi><-i-
^^Ffancesco'I died in 1587 and was succeeded by
his brother Ferdinando I, whose interest in the
growing collection was thoroughly equal to that of
Francesco. During his reign of twenty-two years,
Ferdinando enriched the collection greatly, adding
to it a large number of fine works of art that he
had assembled in his villa at Rome.
Ferdinando I was in his turn succeeded, in 1609,
by^ is son Cosimo II , undeiL whom, in 1610, the
room known as the Tribuna was constructed by
Buontalenti, and the corridor _ passage to the Pi tti
Palace was completed^ In 1621 the succession
passed to i-*erdmahdo II, son of Cosimo II, then
only a boy of eleven. During his long reign of
forty-nine years, Ferdinando II extended the avail-
able accommodation for the still growing collection
by closing in the southern and western wings of
the terrace. Upon his marriage with Yittoria della
Rovere, heiress of the Dukes of Urbino, many more
XCbe ibtstors ot tbe Zflflisi ©aller^ 149
valuable paintings were brought into the collection,
among them the " Reclining Venus " by Titian.
Ferdinando II also added the collection of precious
stones and cameos. With the assistance of his
brother, the Cardinal Leopoldo de' Medici, one of
the most notable patrons of art in the family, Fer-
dinando II was enabled to bring the standard of the
collection up to a high degree of excellence and
fame. The establishment of the nucleus of the col-
lection of drawings and that of the unique collec-
tion of the Portraits of Painters, is due to the in-
terest of the Cardinal.
Ferdinando II was followed, in 1670, by his son
Cosimo III. To him is due the transference to the
Uffizi of many antique works of sculpture that, up
to that time, had been kept in the Boboli Gardens.
From the Villa Medici in Rome he also brought the
figures of the Venus de' Medici, the Knife-Grinder,
and the group of the Wrestlers that had been kept
there in the possession of the family since the days
of his great-grandfather, Ferdinando I.
Under the son of Cosimo III, Giovanni Gastone,
but little was done to enrich the collection. He died
in 1737 without issue, and the line of the Medici
Grand Dukes came to an end. The heir was Gio-
vanni's sister, Anna Maria Luisa, wife of the Elec-
tor Palatine John William. When the Electress
thus came into posession of the art treasures of the
ISO Ube Htt of tbe XIlfQst iPalace
Medici, she bequeathed the entire collection to the
State, stipulating that the works therein contained
should never be taken away from Florence. Upon
the death of her husband, the Electress returned to
Florence, bringing with her many excellent exam-
ples of the work of the famous Flemish and Ger-
man artists, with which she still further enriched
the collection. Under her successors of the House
of Lorraine the bequest was respected. Francesco
II added to the collection numerous antique bronze
and silver medals of his 'own acquisition.
Pietro Leopoldo I, toward the end of the eight-
eenth century, interested himself particularly in
extending the collection of Portraits of the Paint-
ers, and further added to the magnificence of the
gallery by directing that all the works of art be-
longing to the Medici still out of the Gallery should
be brought together and added thereto. Accord-
ingly, all the Medici villas and palaces in Rome and
Florence were stripped of their remaining transport-
able works of art for the enrichment of the great
collection. To receive these works, Pietro Leopoldo
restored the western corridor, which had been
damaged by fire in 1772, and constructed several
new rooms. Upon the installation of the new acqui-
sitions, Pietro Leopoldo provided that the collection
should be thrown open daily to tbe public. Thus
the Uffizi Gallery became the earliest of existing
Zbcjiistot^ of tu mmsi Pallets 151
public collections of works of art. It will be re-
membered that it was to this same Pietro Leopoldo
that the establishment of the Academy was subse-
quently due. Pietro Leopoldo I was one of the best
sovereigns that ever ruled Florence and it was a
great loss to the Grand Duchy when he was called
to the throne of Austria in 1790.
But little improvement was made in the Uffizi
colleotion under the following ruler, the second son
of Pietro Leopoldo, Ferdinando III, It was during
his time that the French invaded Italy. His son
Leopoldo II, however, constructed the special hall
in which are preserved the antique figures of the
Niobe Group from the Villa Medici at Rome.
Under him, also, the Egyptian antiques were added
and the large collection of engravings was put in
order.
The year 1857 marked the end of the reign of
the Grand Dukes and the beginning of the new
regime of the Italian Government. The Renais-
sance sculptures were transferred from the Uffizi
to the new National Museum in the Bargello and
systematic improvement of the arrangement of the
Uffizi collection was begun. During the next dec-
ade the corridor passage to the Pitti Palace was
opened and some of the dra,wings and tapestries
and portraits of the Medici were placed therein.
Later, the drawings were arranged in a special room
152 Ube Hrt ot tbe mmsi palace
in the Uffizi Gallery proper, where they now are,
and the tapestries were transferred to the Archae-
ological Museum. At present, only the portraits
of minor importance, with a few other insignificant
works, are kept in the passage.
At various times, from the eighteenth century on,
the Uffizi collection has been greatly enriched by
the addition of the spoils from suppressed churches
and convents, some of the best paintings in the
gallery having been acquired in this way.
But the history of the collection has not always
been that of unvaried growth and added wealth.
When the French came into possession of the
Grand Duchy, early in the nineteenth century, the
inestimable value of the Uffizi collection excited the
envy of the invaders. They made quite a portent-
ous list of pictures that they planned to transport
to Paris. For the time being, the calamity was
avoided by the strenuous opposition of Tommaso
Puccini, then Director of the Gallery, and Napo-
leon's plan of carrying the Venus de' Medici to
Paris to marry her, as he expressed it, to the Apollo
del Belvedere, was frustrated. A few years later,
however, when subsequent victories had made Na-
poleon stronger, the Venus and many of the finest
pictures in the collection were carried oflf to the
Louvre. After the fall of Napoleon, Ferdinando
III returned to power and sent a commission to
TTbe ibistocg of tbe xaffisi (Bailer^ 153
Paris to request the restitution of the stolen treas-
ures. The commissioners were the senator Ales-
sandri and the painter Benvenuti, together with the
sculptor Canova who especially represented the
Pope and the Austrian throne. Their labours were
only partially successful, resulting in the return of
the Venus and a number of pictures. To the great
disappointment and distress of Florence, many of
the best pictures were retained by the French and
are still in the Louvre, including works by Botti-
celli, Angelico, Filippo Lippi, Ghirlandajo, Gentile
da Fabriano and others. Despite its losses, how-
ever, the Uffizi collection is still one of the most
important in Europe.
In 1903, the eminent authority Signor Corrado
Ricci was made Director of the Gallery. Under
his able and energetic direction, the collection has
grown still larger and more complete. Within re-
cent years, the entire collection of the Gallery
of Santa Maria Nuova has been incorporated
with that of the Uffizi, and the whole rear-
ranged.
It is difficult, at present, to make definitive refer-
ence to any particular work as located in a particu-
lar room, for the pictures are being changed about
constantly. For the most part, however, the im-
portant ones seem now to have found fairly per-
manent locations, so that in our comment on the
IS4 UBe att Of tbe tarast iPaiace
various works we shall deal with thetn room by
room.
Throughout the following Chapters the dates of
the birth and death of a paiiltef are getle'rally
omitted in the text. A reference to the special index
of the artists mentioned in the Volume Will serve
to give desired information as to theif dates and
schools.
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PLAN OF THE UFFIZI GALLERY. FLORENCE
1 — Entrance to the Gallery 16 —
2 — Vestibule to the Venetian Room
3 — Room of the Venetian School 17 —
4 — Fourth Room of the Tuscan School 18 —
5 — Room of Lorenzo Monaco 19 —
6 — Room of Botticelli 20 —
7 — Room of Leonardo 21 —
8 — Room of Michelangelo 22 -
9 — Second Room of the Tuscan School 23 -
10 — Room of the Maps of Tuscany 24 -
11 — First Room of the Tuscan School 25-
12 — Tribuna 26-
13 — Room of Various Italian Masters 27-
14 — Room of the Dutch School 28 -
15 — Second Room of the Flemish and 29 -
German Schools 30 -
31-
First Room of the Flemish and
German Schools
Room of the French School
Cabinet of Gems
East Corridor
South Corridor
West Corridor
Room of Van der Goes
Room of Rubens
Room of Inscriptions
Room of Baroccio
Hall of Niobe
Room of Giovanni da San Giovanni
Room of Miniatures and Pastels
Room of Desisrns
Room of the Drawings
Passage to the Pitti Gallery
CHAPTER XI
THE UFFIZI GALLERY r THE EAST CORRIDOR
Passing by the works of sculpture that flank the
vestibule and the wide stairway leading to the up-
per floor of the Palazzo degli Uflizi, one finally
enters the Gallery proper, and finds one's self in the
long, eastern corridor, the first portion of the old
loggia to be closed in by Bu'ontalenti under Fran-
cesco I.
All three of the corridors of the Gallery contain
many excellent works of antique sculpture, the
consideration of which it will be wise to defer. The
east, or first corridor, contains also numerous early
paintings, to which some careful attention should
be given before entering the various rooms de-
voted 'to the later works. The earliest of these
paintings, mostly altar-pieces of moderate size, done
in tempera on wood, are found at the extreme north-
ern end of the corridor. ^ Here and there, through
the collection, are old pictures bearing numbers du-
plicating those of other pictures. This temporary
annoyance is due to the fact that the pictures in
the collection from Santa Maria Nuova, for which
is6 Ube art of tbe mffisi ©alacc
there was a separate catalogue, were simply dis-
persed through the corridors and rooms, pending
complete incorporation with the Uffizi eolleotion.
In our present comment on the pictures we shall
distinguish by note those that came from Santa
Maria Nuova.
The earliest picture in the collection, Number i,
probably antedates any in the Academy. It is an old
and lifeless Madonna of unmistakable Greco-Byzan-
tine workmanship, not later than the tenth century.
The absolute, slavish crystalliziation of the form of
the enthroned Virgin and those of the attendant
angels is distinctly evident. A close inspection of
the work will sihow that its technique is of a su-
perior order. There is ample evidence of the
mastery of the craftsman over his materials. Noth-
ing is irregular or uncertain. The drawing is
confident and the paint is well laid on. It is clear
that the painter's hand was working in a way that
can be called a distinct manner, a habit resulting
from long drill and practice. Every stroke of the
brush fell just where it was intended to go, and
there it remained. But the result is the lifeless
repetition of forms that had stiffened into rigidity
long before this artist ever saw the light of day.
As we have already seen, in examples in the
Academy, the native Italian work of the eleventh
and twelfth centuries, quite barbaric in type, still
xatflsi (Bailers: East Corri&or 157
followed the Byzantine lead, but with much infer-
ior technique. A good example of this type of
work is seen in Number 2, an Italian Madonna of
the twelfth century. The germ of the great thir-
teenth century work of Cimabue may be detected
in this picture. Number 3 is another Italian work
of the twelfth century, a thoroughly characteristic
Crucifixion, although somewhat larger than the
average. This colossal panel presents instances of
several traditional features of such early composi-
tions. As has been previously noted, the represen-
tations of this subject executed earlier than the
thirteenth century invariably showed the Christ
with eyes wide open, it having been the prevalent
belief that Ha was still alive when His body was
pierced with the spear. Pope Clement V, in the
thirteenth century, declared this belief to be hereti-
cal, and subsequent pictures always showed the eyes
closed. Similarly, this picture, in common with
earlier ones, shows the feet of the Christ separated,
each being pierced with a separate nail. After the
thirteenth century, the feet were always superim-
posed and together pierced with a single nail. These
changes were officially directed by the Church upon
the strength of the testimony of Saint Francis, to
whom the heavenly vision of the Crucified appeared
in the thirteenth century. Another quaint old cus-
tom is observed in this picture, where the figures of
is8 XEbe Htt ot tbe TUffisi IPalace
the Virgin and Saint John are shown placed at the
extremities of the arms of the cross. This con-
vention seems to have been remarkably persistent,
being still observed in pictures of much later date.
It was symbolic of the words of Jesus given in the
Gospel of Saint John, XIX : 26-27. On either side
of the cross are found the usual small square scenes
from the Passion of the Saviour, in which one may
study the methods and devices of the narrative art
upon which we have previously dwelt at some
length in connection with the early Magdalen in the
Academy. The typical elements of these scenes are
rigidly conventional. In the adjacent Crucifixion,
Number 4, they appear again. Here the panel has
been subjected to some mutilation, the extremities
of the cross having been cut off.
Number 6 is a later Crucifixion, of the four-
teenth century, with the eyes closed and the feet
pierced with a single nail, although the figures of
the Virgin and Saint John still retain their custom-
ary places on the arms of the cross. Another an-
cient symbol of frequent occurrence, is here seen
above the cross : — the pelican feeding her young
by lacerating her breast. That this bird was accus-
tomed to feed her nestlings with blood drawn from
her own breast, by plucking thereat with her sharp
bill, was an old fable. Hence, the pelican has been
considered from the earliest times as a symbol of
Tafflai Oaiiers: East ccotcisor 159
charity, and in sacred art as a symbol of personal
sacrifice. Quaint reference is made to this in the
Early-Enghsh religious poem of the Holy Rood :
"The pelicane his blood did blede
Ther-with his briddus for to feed;
Thit betokenet on the rode
Oure lord us fede with his blode."
It will be remembered, in this connection, that the
Rode or Rood, so-called, was a cross or crucifix,
and that this term was particularly applied to the
large painted or carved crucifixes placed at the en-
trance to the chancel or choir in a mediaeval church.
The large size of Number 3 and Number 6 woiild
indicate that both were intended for such important
use. An interesting feature of Number 6 is the
modest portrait of its donor ktieeling at the foot of
ithe cross. This is one of the earliest extant exam-
ples of the introduction of such a figure into a
sacred painting, although the practice is occasionally
noted in old mosaics. This crucifix is attributed.
Somewhat doubtfully, to Puccio Capanna, a pupil of
Giotto, who flourished about the middle of the four-
teenth century. The adjacent Madonna Enthrotied
with Saints Peter and Paul, Number 7, is another
characteristic work of the satne period, with an
interesting predella iti which the martyrdom of
Saiilt Catherihe is reptesented with good narrative
i6o ^be Hrt of tbe mffisi palace
ability. Number 12 is a similar large Crucifixion
of the School of Giotto.
Number 8, a good altar-piece from the old Con-
vento degli Angeli, represents the Agony of Christ
in the Garden of Gcthsemane. Because of its gen-
eral excellence, it was formerly attributed directly
to Giotto, but is now assigned to Don Lorenzo
Monaco. It is probably a work of the late four-
teenth or early fifteenth century. In this picture
are noticed the traditional elements that figured
so strikingly in Perugino's presentation of the same
subject in the Academy. Beside the Saviour there
is the Angel with the Cup, and the three sleeping
Disciples. To the left is a small kneeling figure
of considerable individuality, an old man, the very
plainness of whose attire speaks eloquently of his
humility. He is the donor of the picture. The
small scenes in the predella are equally good, de-
picting the Betrayal and the Parting of the Rai-
ment of Christ.
Three other excellent works from the brush of
Lorenzo Monaco are found farther along the cor-
ridor. Numbers 39, 40 and 41. Number 39 is an
Adoration of the Magi formerly attributed to Fra
Angelico. It was painted by order of the Signoria
of Florence for the old Church of Santa Lucia de'
Magnoli. Despite the splitting of the panel and the
extensive restoration of the picture, it is still exceed-
XUffisf (Bailers: East (lorri5or i6i
ingly characteristic. The attenuated sinuosity of
the figures in the train of the Magi is peculiar to
Lorenzo. Every traditional detail is here found
just as we observed it in the earlier pictures, varied
only by the artist's personal interpretation. The
figures of the Madonna and the three Magi are
exceptionally good. Between the pinnacles of this
altar-piece are the Madonna and the Angel of the
Annunciation, notably different in style from the
rest of the work. These figures were introduced
much later by Cosimo Rosselli.
Number 40 is a Piet?i, by Lorenzo Monaco, with
a background fairly infested with emblematic
figures that constitute a veritable puzzle of sacred
symbolism. All are associated with the Passion of
the Saviour. The picture dates from 1404.
From the crypt of the Benedictine Monastery of
San Bartolommeo at Monte Oliveto, near Florence,
comes the fine tabernacle. Number 41, by Lorenzo
Monaco. The picture is still in its original frame
and is a work of much charm and character, painted
in 1410. It is a Madonna with Saints and Angels,
among which figures the latter are especially beauti-
ful. The saints at the left are Thaddeus and Bene-
dict, while those at the right are Bartholomew and
Jo'hn the Baptist.
Number 14, of the school of Andrea Orcagna, is
a large and dignified figure of Saint John the Evan-
i62 Ube Htt of tbe TUtRsi ipalace
gelist Enthroned. Beside the gaint is his aocus-
tomed symbol, the eagle. In this connection, it is
well to recall that in sacred art the symbols of the
evangelists are derived from the description of the
celestial vision given in the first chapter of the
Book of Ezekiel. The four faces there spoken of
are interpreted as prophetic of the writers of the
oan'onical gospels. Hence the man or angel is the
attribute of Matthew, the Hon of Mark, the ox of
Luke, and the eagle of John. One cannot fail to
note a certain similitude of character between each
evangelist, as we know him through his writings,
and his attribute in art. In Number 14 we find
Saint John relentlessly trampling the unresisting
vices beneath his feet, in true Dominican style.
There is no mistaking the identity of these pros-
trate figures, for they are plainly labelled : — Pride,
Avarice, Vanity. Above is a vision of the Christ
holding the letters that are the emblems of His
eternity : — "I lam Alpha and Omega, the Begin-
ning and the End." The enthroning of a prophet
or saint in such a picture was not infrequent during
the fourteenth century. Number 10 presents Saint
Bartholomew in such a manner and Number 20
Saint Cecilia, both by unidentified fourteenth-cen-
tury artists, the latter formerly erroneously attrib-
uted to Cimabue.
Saint Cecilia, as here represented, is a stately
mffi3i ©alien?: East Cotut&or 163
figure, painted for the high altar of the old church
dedicated to her. Around her, in the quaint style
of the preceding century, are eight panels present-
ing incidents in her life. She was one of the four
great Virgin Martyrs of the Latin Church, and her
legend is one of the most beautiful of those that
figure in sacred art. It is recounted with close
fidelity by Chaucer in his " Seconde Nonnes Tale."
The main incidents are worthy of mention here.
Cecilia was a talented Roman maiden, of noble
family, who lived during the third century.
Brought up as a Christian by her parents, who
secretly professed the new religion, she early made
a solemn vow to devote herself to the things of
heaven and to keep herself unspotted from the
world. Endowed with remarkable ability as a
musician, she lived a tranquil and pious life, en-
dearing herself to all who knew her, until she
reached the age of sixteen. At this time her par-
ents married her to a good and noble young Ro-
man named Valerian. In our altar-piece the first
ismiall picture on the left represents the wedding
feast, made joyous with much music. Valerian
was a pagan and while Cecilia, in filial obedience,
accepted him as her husband, she wore beneath her
bridal robes a rough garment of penance, in token
of her secret vow of chastity. At once, upon the
conclusion of the wedding festivities, Cecilia elo-
i64 XCbe art of tbe lUffisi palace
quently reasoned with her husband, as shown in
the second picture, persuading him both to respect
her vow and to adopt the religion that she pro-
fessed. Valerian sought further instruction and
was ultimately baptized, and with his wife was
crowned by an angel with wreaths of celestial
roses. This is shown in the third picture. In ac-
cordance with a promise made by the angel at
this time, Cecilia was granted the joy of converting
also the brother of her husband, Tiburtius by name.
This is shown in the fourth picture. Without
delay, Tiburtius was also baptized, as shown in
the fifth picture, at the right of the altar-piece.
Then all three devoted themselves to lives of charity
and preaching, as shown in the sixth picture.
Soon Cecilia fell under the ill-favour of the cruel
pagan prefect of Rome. Valerian and Tiburtius
were put to death and buried by Cecilia in the
catacomb cemetery of Saint Calixtus. Then the
prefect endeavoured to force her to make sacrifice
to the pagan gods, as shown in the seventh picture.
Failing in this, he was enraged and ordered that
she should be taken to her home and scalded to
death with boiling water in her own bath. But,
miraculously, the water had no effect upon her body,
and she was then stabbed in the breast and neck
by the executioners and left to bleed to death. The
martyrdom is shown in the eighth picture. Her
TIlfR3i ©allerp: East Corri&or 165
body was buried by the Christians beside that of
her husband. Subsequently the house of Cecilia
in Rome was consecrated as a Christian church,
now known as Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, where
the bathroom may still be seen transformed into
a small chapel. This picture of the popular saint
is the oldest now in existence, with the single excep-
tion of the great mosaic figure in the apse of her
church in Rome. She is here represented as the
solemn and stately virgin martyr. In her charac-
ter as the young and beautiful patroness of music,
she does not appear in art until the fifteenth century.
Returning to a point a little farther back, we
direct attention to Number 5, a primitive Sienese
Madonna, attributed to Guido da Siena, of the
thirteenth century. Number 15, painted perhaps
fifty years later, is of the more advanced Sienese
type, although still not far removed from the By-
zantine. It was painted by Pietro Lorenzetti for
the Church of Saint Francis in Pistoja, and is
signed by him with the date 1340. A much more
characteristic work of Pietro, however, is Number
16, depicting the Life of the Holy Hermits in the
Theban Desert. This is a quaint panel, with many
figures and scenes, centring around the venerable
Saint Anthony. The whole composition, hardly
worthy of the name, bears a striking resemblance
to that on the wall of the Campo Santo at Pisa.
i66 Zbe art of tbe xaffisi IPalace
It was about the middle of the fourth century when
these pious anchorites began to gather in com-
munities in the desert east of the Nile, and there,
under the rule of Anthony the Abbot, the first
monastic community came into existence. Thence
the institution was brought to Italy by Jerome. The
simple, and at times childish, occupations of these
hermits constitute the material of which Pietro
made his picture. Artistic quality is lacking and
no knowledge of perspective is evident in this panel,
but it is nevertheless worthy of some intimate study
at first hand.
Probably the finest old altar-piece in the corri-
dor is the triptych, Number 23, presenting the An-
nunciation with Saints. It is one of the most beau-
tiful productions of the early Sienese school to
be found anywhere, and is the combined work of
Simone Martini and Lippo Memmi, dated 1333.
The craftsmanship displayed in this triptych is
unique. The entire panel was first covered with a
smooth ground on which gold-leaf was laid. Upon
this brilliant metal surface the painting was done
in tempera, which accounts for the wonderful
lustre of the colours. Throughout the picture is
much stamped and tooled work, in gold, all of re-
markable delicacy and beauty. Lippo Memmi evi-
dently did the gold work, while Simone Martini did
the painting. The triptych is still mounted in its
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Gothic frame, as it was originally displayed in
the Duomo of Siena, but with some good modern
restoration.
The most exquisite figure in the altar-piece is
that of the kneeling angel, in the central panel.
Distinctly celestial in form and grace, with many-
hued wings and soft, white, gold-stamped robe,
this angel is a fitting herald to bear from heaven
the wonderful message. He is crowned with olive
and bears a branch of the same symbolic tree in
his hand. His head is encircled with a nimbus deli-
cately tooled in the gold background, and his Salu-
tation, in raised letters of brilliant gold, proceeds
from his open mouth. On the hem of his robe
and on his loosely flowing ribbons is much more
of fine gold ornament and beautifully traced in-
scription. So daintily has all this fine work been
done that it in no way cheapens the loveliness of
the figure itself. In the whole realm of Sienese
art, no more quaintly charming figure than this
angel was ever painted.
The Madonna, for her part, is seated in an ex-
quisite chair of inlaid work that is patterned after
the costly cathedra or bishop's throne of the day.
With traditional Byzantine expression and gesture,
placing her thumb between the pages of the book
she has been reading, she half shrinks away from
the angelic visitor. In striking and delightful con-
i68 Ube Hrt of tbe vxmsi ipalacc
trast with the angel, the Madonna is robed in dark
red, over which a blue mantle is thrown. The origi-
nal brilliancy of these colours has been somewhat
marred by re-painting. Between the two figures
stands a vase with sprays of the conventional lily,
symbolic of purity. Above is the dove of the Holy
Spirit, surrounded by a rich mandorla of winged
cherub heads. Circular medallions, with figures of
prophets and saints, fill the pinnacles of the
frame.
In the panel at the left is the good figure of the
martyr Saint Ansano of Siena, originally the chief
patron of the city. The figure in the panel at the
right is identified in the catalogue as Saint Giulietta,
but is more probably Saint Reparata, original pa-
troness of Florence, who frequently figures with
Saint Ansano in pictures painted when Siena and
Florence were at peace.
Another fourteenth-century picture on a gold
ground, by an unidentified Florentine painter, pos-
sibly Maso di Banco, is a Deposition, Number 27.
In some of its figures, this composition is sugges-
tively comparable with the Descent from the Cross
by Fra Angelico in the Academy. A rather unique
feature of this picture is found in the two female
figures of the donors kneeling at the left, a nun and
a young girl, presented by their patrons who respec-
tively place their hands upon the heads of their vo-
XDlffiSt ©allets: East CorriSor 169
taries. The saints are Benedict and Remigio. It
was for the church of the latter that the picture was
painted.
In Number 45, by Lorenzo di Bicci, are shown the
Physician-Saints, Patrons of the Medici, Cosimo
and Damiano. They are dressed in the usual physi-
cian's garb of red, and hold forceps and boxes of
ointment. These figures are among the most typi-
cal representations of these worthies who figure so
prominently in art under the Medici, and are in-
teresting on that account. The visitor to the Uffizi
should not overlook them.
In Numbers 66, tj, and 68 are found three small
but excellent panels of a clothes-press or chest.
They are of the School of Botticelli and depict
scenes from the Story of Esther, presented with
skill and charm. It was very common, in those
days, to decorate furniture in such a way as this,
and even the best masters in art did not despise
such a commission. It i? interesting to note that
these panels are a late acquisition of the Gallery,
having been purchased in 1781 from a Florentine
carpenter in whose family they had been for gen-
erations.
Numbers 1249 and 1282, by Francesco Granacci,
are similar panels intended for interior decoration.
They depict scenes from the Life of Joseph, inclu-
ding many small but well-executed figures. Vasari
I70 Ubc art Of tbc raffi3i IPalace
gives, with some circumstance, the amusing tale of
these panels and others that were executed at the
same time, 1523, for the decoration of the nuptial
chamber of Pierfrancesco Borgherini and his wife
Margherita Acciaiuoli. The work was commis-
sioned by Salvi Borgherini, father of Pierfran-
cesco. Beside Granacci, the various panels for
the furniture in this famous chamber were
painted by Bacchiacca, Pontormo and Andrea
del Sarto.
The chamber in question was in the Borgherini
Palace in Florence, and such was the fame of its
decorations that they were ardently coveted by a
certain Giovanni Battista della Palla, who was spe-
cial agent of Francis I, King of France, for the
acquirement of art treasures for the French royal
collections. It happened that during the siege of
Florence, Borgherini had taken himself to Lucca,
leaving his wife at home. Delia Palla seized upon
the opportunity and succeeded in obtaining from the
Signoria of Florence a commission to remove all
the furniture and decorations from the chamber,
being required only to pay the price thereof to the
wife of Borgherini. In high spirits, then, Della
Palla presented himself at the Borgherini palace
and exhibited his commission. But he had not
reckoned with his hostess. He was confronted by
the enraged spouse of the absent warrior, and there-
XIlfB3i (BalletT?: East <rorri^or 171
upon the would-be intruder received such a tongue-
lashing as fairly took his breath away and caused
him to beat a hasty and undignified retreat, never
again to attempt to carry out his purpose. It is due
to the worthy memory of this combative and faith-
ful wife that we should give, as nearly as possible,
the exact words that she hurled into the teeth of
the king's agent with the rapidity and precision of
a machine-gun. Blashfield's translation is superb.
The excellent Margherita, with due and appropri-
ate mien and forceful gesture, remarked upon the
matter somewhat as follows :
" How then ! dost thou, Giovan Battista, thou,
vile broker of frippery, miserable huckster of two-
pences, dost thou presume to come hither with in-
tent to lay thy fingers on the ornaments which be-
long to the chambers of gentlemen, despoiling, as
thou hast done and as thou art for ever doing, this
our City of her fairest and richest ornaments, to em-
bellish strange lands therewith, and to adorn the
halls of our enemies? Not that I can marvel at
thee, man of base lineage, and traitior to thy country,
however grovelling may be thy acts; but for the
magistrates of our city, who have descended to abet
these abominable proceedings, what shall be said?
This bed, which thou, for thy own greediness of
gain and sordid self-interest, wouldst now lay hands
on, vainly seeking to veil thy evil purposes under
172 Zbc art of tbe Tlimsi palace
a fair pretence, — this bed was adorned with all
the beauty which enriches it by my father-in-law
Salvi, in honour of my nuptials, to which he held
this magnificent and regal ornament but the fitting
decoration. I, then, do prize this gift, both from
reverence to his memory and out of the love I
bear my husband; wherefore, I mean to defend it
with my own blood, and will retain it while I have
life. Depart from this house then Giovan Battista,
thou and thy myrmidons; depart, and say to those
who have permitted themselves to send thee hither
with command to remove these labours of art from
their place, that I am here; I, who will not sufifer
that one iota shall be disturbed from where it
stands! Tell them, moreover, that if it befit them
to listen to the counsels of such as thou art, base
creature of nothingness, and if they must needs
make presents to the king, Francis of France; tell
them, I say, that they may go to their own houses,
and despoiling their own chambers of their orna-
ments, may send them to his Majesty! For thy-
self, if again thou shouldst be so bold as to come on
a similar errand to this house, thou shalt be amply
taught what is the respect due to the dwelling
of a gentleman from such as thou art, and that
to thy serious discomfort, make thyself sure
of it!"
It is needless to add that the works of art in
TUffiSt Callers : East Corrieor 173
question were not disturbed until long after the
death of this noble lady. Some of the panels from
the furniture are now in the Pitti Gallery and some
in the National Gallery in London.
CHAPTER XII
THE UFFIZI GALLERY: THE ROOM OF LORENZO
MONACO
In addition to the excellent collection of Early-
Florentine works found in the East Corridor are
several of the finest and most interesting paintings
of this period, hung in the small Room of Lo-
renzo Monaco, reached by passing from the Corri-
dor through the Fourth Room of the Tuscan
School.
The earliest of these few pictures from the brush
of Don Lorenzo Monaco himself, master of Fra
Angelico, is Number 1309, representing the mysti-
cal Coronation of the Virgin. This is one of the
largest and most elaborately framed altar-pieces
of its time, having been executed in 141 3 for the
high altar of the artist's own Convento degli Angeli.
After having remained in its original position for
more than a century and a half, it was removed to
make way for a newer work, and was transferred
to the Badia of San Pietro a Cerrito, near Certaldo,
an annex of the Convento degli Angedi some twenty
miles south-west of Florence. Here the picture re-
174
DON LORENZO MONACO. —THE CORONATION OF THE VIRGIN
XUfn^t ©allers: Xorenso /iDonaco 175
mained, in obscurity, until 1830, when it was re-
discovered. In 1866 it was brought to Florence,
and after much re^painting, was placed in the Uffizi
Gallery. Despite the general gaudiness of the res-
toration, the picture is still one of the noblest works
of the fifteenth century. In it can be seen the germ
of the later representation of the same subject by
the great Carmelite, Fra Filippo Lippi, in i:he
Academy.
The lower portion of the main panel of this large
altar-piece presents the usual symbolic rainbow
vault of heaven, studded with stars, forming the
ground of the composition. Directly in front were
originally three angels. The central one, playing
an organ, is almost entirely destroyed, quite a large
part of the work having been hopelessly obliterated,
at some unknown time, in accommodating a taber-'
nacle for the reception of the Host. The two re-
maining figures of angels, swinging censers, are still
graceful and efifective, but very badly re-ipainted. In
the centre of the composition, under a Gothic bald-
acchino, the striking figure of the Christ places the
jewelled diadem upon the inclined head of the Vir-
gin. Her posture is devout and modest, and her
figure is draped in a loose, soft robe of white, sym-
bolic of her purity. Around and behind the throne
is gathered an interesting group of kneeling and
standing angels, symbolic of the Monastery " degli
176 Ube Hrt of tbe TIlfHst palace
Angdi." Among the numerous important saints on
either side we may note several of the most promi-
nent. Under the left arch of the frame, in the front
rank, nearest the throne, always the place of great-
est honour in such a composition, kneels Saint John
the Baptist, patron of Florence. Beside him is Saint
Peter, patriarch of the Roman Church, bearing his
keys. In the Gospel of Matthew, XVI: 19, Jesus'
charge to Peter is recorded : " And I will give unto
thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven." Beside
him, in a white habit, is Saint Benedict, with a
scourge and an open book. It will be remembered
that 'the Camaldolesan Order was a reformed branch
of the Order of Saint Benedict. On the opposite
side of the picture, to balance Saint Benedict, ap-
pears the white-robed figure of Saint Romualdo,
founder of the Camaldolesi. Beside him is Saint
Andrew, brother and companion of Peter. Next
to the throne is Saint John the Evangelist. In the
three tabernacles surmounting the pinnacles, or cus-
pidi, are shown the Saviour surrounded by long-
winged angels, the Angel of the Annunciation, and
the Virgin. The latter figures, in the side taber-
nacles recall those in Lorenzo's Annunciation upon
which we have previously commented.
In the pilasters of the frame of this altar-piece,
and in the predella, are small panels in the usual
better state of preservation. The pilaster panels dis-
TUtHii ©alleru: Xorenso /IDonaco 177
play beautifully executed miniature figures of Old
Testament characters and prophets. In the six pre-
della panels are the customary presentation of the
Nativity and the Adoration, together with scenes
from the life of Saint Benedict. Much of the frame
of this triptych is modern, but its design follows
closely that of the original. As a whole and in
minute detail, this splendid old altar-piece fully de-
serves intimate acquaintance. Don Lorenzo's art
was always serious and his colour schemes sombre,
but the spark of vitality was never absent from his
work. One always finds much to admire in the
sedate and rhythmic stateliness of his compositions,
so well suited to the positions of dignity for which
they were designed.
Number 17, Fra Angelico's famous triptych tab-
ernacle of the Arte dei Linaiuoli, or Guild of the
Flax-Weavers, was painted about twenty years
later than Don Lorenzo's triptych. It is a large
work, a winged altar-piece in excellent condition,
being one of the artist's best and most significant
productions. The central panel presents the Vir-
gin and Child in traditional pose. The figure of the
Madonna is a trifle crude in drawing, perhaps, but
handled with characteristic delicacy and reverence.
The hem of her soft blue mantle is richly embroid-
ered with a running decorative pattern, the motive
of which is a laudatory inscription in Latin. Her
178 trbe art ot tbc lamsf ©alacc
face is the least satisfactory part of her, being more
than usually insipid, but this effect is due ift great
measure to the loss of delicate modelling in the
features resulting from over-zealous cleaning. On
her right s'houlder appears the symbolic star, the
" Stella Maris " or Star of the Sea, being a poetical
interpretation of her name as it is in the Hebrew, — -
Miriam.
Standing upon the lap of the Madonna is the
doll-like figure of the Christ Child, His head in-
vested with the formal cruciform nimbus. In His
hand He bears the pearly orb of sovereignty, an
attribute so placed in the hands of the Child from
very early times in Christian art. The Madonna
is seated upon an embroidered cushion similar to
those shown in the old mosaics. The background
is hung with heavy, figured tapestries that lend an
effect of dignity to the picture somewhat unusual
in the work of the unpretentious Dominican. In
this connection, however, it must be noted that the
Guild for which the picture was painted was among
the wealthiest in Florence. Over the Virgin's head
hoyers the Dove of the Holy Spirit.
In the sides and top of the wide, recessed frame
of the panel, are found those well-known and oft-
copied figures of angels with musical instruments,
twelve dainty beings, not surpassed for beauty and
exquisite grace by any that were ever painted by
FRA ANGELICO. — DETAIL OF THE TABERNACLE OF THE ARTE
DEI LINAIUOLI
XDlffi3i Oalleri?: Xorenso /iDonaco 179
the Blessed Angelico. The large wings attached to
either side of the frame display on the inside the
figures of Saint John the Baptist and Saint Mark,
patrons respectively of the city and the Guild; and
on the outside, Saint Peter and Saint Mark.
The predella to this altar-piece is attached to it,
below, bearing a separate number, 1294. There are
three small panels. In the first is Saint Peter
preaching at Rome. Among the auditors sits Saint
Mark, with a writing tablet, taking down the words
of the patriarch. In the third panel is the Martyr-
dom of Saint Mark at Alexandria. The saint, with
his hands tied together, is being dragged at the end
of a rope, while his tormentors are suddenly con-
fused and struck down by a miraculous storm ac-
companied by 'hail and lightning. In the central
panel is the Adoration of the Magi, in which one
of the kings has drawn Joseph aside and appears
to be entering into certain negotiations with him,
for some strange and unfathomable purpose.
Very lovely indeed, and in some respects in
striking contrast to Don Lorenzo's Coronation, is
Fra Angelico's presentation of the same subject.
Number 1290, that stands upon an easel. It is one
of the most brilliant little paintings that the Domini-
can ever finished, being executed on a ground of
gold. The radiant effect of the great aureole around
the central figures of Christ and the Madonna is
iSo ^be Hct ot tbe mmst palace
obtained solely by tooling the surface of 'the gold-
covered panel. The picture must indeed have pre-
sented a striking appearance when illuminated by
the candles upon the altar over which it originally
hung in the transept of the Church of Santa Maria
Nuova.
In the central ground of this composition are
seen the traditional angels with censers and musical
instruments. On either side of the Christ and the
Madonna are still more deliciously beautiful little
angel figures, dancing and making music. Crowds
of saints, with fine faces, fill the extreme sides and
corners of the panel, among whom may be recog-
nized several with whose attributes we have become
familiar. The predella panels belonging to this
picture are found in another room of the Gallery,
the First Room of the Tuscan School.
Number 13 lo is an interesting series of four
panels, portions of a polyptych, by the Umbrian,
Gentile da Fabriano, in thorough keeping with the
general sumptuousness and decorative character of
his work. The original central panel, a Madonna,
is missing, but the remaining five panels are placed
in their proper order. In the position of honour is
the children's friend and patron, Santa Claus, or
more properly, Saint Nicholas of Bari, in his bish-
op's robes. These robes are richly embroidered
with miniature pictures, presenting scenes from the
FRA AXGELICO. — THE CORONATION OF THE VIRGIN
XIlffi3l ©alters : Xoren^o /iBonaco i8i
early life of Christ. Such embroidored robes are
not uncommon in sacred art. Beside Saint Nicholas
stands the Magdalen with her alabaster box. On
the right are two easily recognized popular Floren-
tine patrons, Saint John the Baptist and Saint
George, the latter prominently displaying his red
cross on his shield. Characteristic pinnacles above
these panels contain representations of still other
saints of lesser importance, and angels. The altar-
piece was painted in 1425 for the Florentine Church
of Saint Nicholas.
It is almost needless to say that Saint Nicholas
of Bari, or of Myra, is one of the most popular
saints in the calendar. He is the general patron of
children, of sailors, of travellers and merchants and
pawnbrokers, as well as of seaport towns. In art.
Saint George and Saint Nicholas frequently occur
together, for the 'one was the patron of the knight
and the other of the common people. Saint
Nicholas is the special protector of the weak, the
captive, the slave, the poor, the oppressed. Upon
the occasion of his festival, early in December, he
brings delightful presents to the good children, and
for the bad he has a good birch rod.
Nicholas was born in Asia Minor during the third
century. His parents were Christians, and from the
very day of his birth the child ex^hibited most re-
markable indications of unusual piety. While
i82 Ube art ot tbc lllffl3i IPalace
Nicholas was still young, his parents died, leaving
him possessed of great wealth, and when he grew
up, unspoiled by his fortune, he became a priest.
At that time there was in the town a nobleman^
with three beautiful daughters, who had suddenly
lost his wealth and had reached the verge of starva-
tion. In despair, the father was sitting alone one
night in his home, wondering whence the next day's
food might come, when Nicholas passed by the
house. Observing through the window the dejec-
tion of the father and the bareness of the apartment,
the generous priest threw into the room a purse well
filled with gold, and hurried away under cover of
the night. Twice again, on subsequent nights, he
did the same thing, and with the money the man was
able successfully to marry off his daughters and to
re-establish himsplf in comfortable circumstances.
On account of this incident, Saint Nicholas is fre-
quently represented with three round purses, or
three balls of gold, at his feet, or near at hand. It
is this attribute of Saint Nicholas that for many
centuries has been displayed before the shops of the
pawnbrokers, the good saint being the patron both
of the broker and the borrower, as well as the
guardian of property.
Saint Nicholas died in the year 326, as bishop of
Myra in Asia Minor, but in the eleventh century his
remains were brought to Bari in Italy, where they
TSitRsi (Bailers: Xotenso Monaco 183
still lie, in the crypt of the church that bears his
name.
With the exception of a very satisfactory Ma-
donna and Angels, Number 1544, by Bartolommeo
Caporali, a fifteenth-century Perugian, all of the
remaining half dozen pictures in this room are
comparatively unimportant.
CHAPTER XIII
THE UFFIZI GALLERY : THE ROOM OF BOTTICELLI
When Sandro Botticelli was a young man, hav-
ing barely established himself as an independent
artist, fresh from the studio of Fra Filippo Lippi,
there existed in Florence a most remarkable Tri-
bunal known as the Universita della Mercatanzia.
This corporation was composed of six Florentine
citizens and six foreign Doctors of Law and had its
official residence in a palace at the eastern end of the
Piazza della Signoria. Here the Tribunal sat and
discussed matters bearing upon commercial and
maritime interests at home and abroad, settling dis-
putes and adjusting bankruptcies. This famous
body of men was consulted frequently by parties
bringing appeals from all parts of the civilized
world. It was the first great international Board
of Trade.
In the year 1469, the Mercatanzia desired the
loggia of its palace decorated with panels represent-
ing, by allegorical figures, the seven great cardinal
virtues. The commission was given to Piero Pol-
laiuolo, then in the twenty-sixith year of his age.
184
■Gimst ©allets: IRoom of 3BottfcelU 185
Several of these decorative panels, mostly in rather
bad state of preservation, are now in the Uffizi, in
the Room of Botticelli, adjoining that of Lorenzo
Monaco. Number 70 is Justice, Number 73 is
Charity and Number 1306, in really good condition,
is Prudence. They all exhibit the characteristic
lack of modelling and attenuation of limb that mark
the work of Piero, and are not to be regarded as
very noteworthy achievements. But they played
their part in the drama of art, and provoked keen
rivalry and competition among the young artists of
Florence at the time, many of whom would fain
have shared the commission with Piero, for a work
of art in the Palazzo della Mercatanzia was an
advertisement of world-wide value. With no one,
however, was the commission shared save with
Sandro Botticelli, to whom,, at the instance of his
friend Tommaso Soderini, the figure of Fortitude
was given. This panel. Number 1299, was painted
in 1470, when Botticelli was twenty-three years of
age.
In this work, the young painter was in his real
element. He was using the human figure for pur-
poses half symbolic, half decorative, and we cannot
but feel the intensity of the poetic fervour that the
artist threw into his labour. Here it was that the
wonderful decorative ^nius for which Botticelli
was to become so famous, had its first great oppor-
i86 Ube Htt of tbe iHtSisi palace
tunity to breathe in a congenial attnosphere.
Proudly the striking figure sits upon her throne,
holding in her hands a ponderous mace, conscious
of the power that is in her. There is expression
in every detail of her heavy form, the hands, par-
ticularly, being wonderfully painted. There is much
about the work that suggests the influence of Fra
Filippo.
Another early picture of somewhat similar char-
acter, is Number 1179, a small panel representing
the great patriarch Saint Augustine seated in a
deep architectural study-niche, engaged in transcri-
bing passages from the sacred books of the Bible.
All around him, in speaking disorder, lie torn pa-
pers and discarded pens, mute evidences of the dri-
ving labour of the scribe. So much does the paint-
ing resemble that of Fra Filippo, that for a long
time Vasari's attribution of the work to that master
was accepted without challenge. Now, however, the
beautiful little picture is definitely assigned to Bot-
ticelli. It is in most excellent condition, a very
worthy example of the work of Sandro's first
period.
Comparable with these decorative panels is one
by some unknown pupil or follower of the school
of Botticelli, showing almost equally the influence
of the Master and of Fra Filippo Lippi. It is a
Madonna and Child, Number 13O3, posed under
xaffi3i ©aller^: iRoom of Bottfcellt 187
an arched portico and backed by roses and trees.
In her hand the Virgin holds a cut pomegranate,
the very ancient symbol of religious hope, from
which the Child is picking the seeds.
Smaller still than the Saint Augustine, and even
more exquisite, is another little early picture. Num-
ber 1 1 56, representing Judilh and her slave return-
ing from the camp of Holofernes, with the grue-
some evidence . of the conquest. The dramatic
stories of the apocryphal books of the Bible seemed
to make a strong appeal to the imagination of the
Renaissance. In the book of Judith is told, with
much detail and striking circumstance, one of the
most popular of these stories.
Nebuchadnezzar, King of Assyria, sent forth
toward Judaea a great host to avenge himself upon
the inhabitants of the land, because they had not
regarded his command to join with him in one of
his numerous wars. The host of the Assyrians,
under Holofernes, their captain, marked the line of
their march with great slaughter and finally camped
before Bethulia, and gave siege to the city, so that
the inhabitants thereof were in dire fear of the
mighty army and its murderous chieftain. Now
there was in the city a young widow, Judith by
name, a woman of rernarkable beauty and piety,
and also of much wealth. And Judith pondered
over the strait of the city and sent for the govern-
i88 Ube art of tbe fSimii palace,
ors to come to her. They came without delay,
for Judith, as has been said, was a remarkable
woman. Moreover, she knew her power and was
thoroughly capable of exercising it to advantage.
So Judith told the governors that she had conceived
a plan to go forth to conquer the Assyrian captain,
accompanied only by her handmaid. But she would
not tell them what she proposed to do. In the end
she had her way and they let her go. She dressed
herself in her finest apparel and made her way by
night to the camp of the Assyrians.
In three days, posing as a fugitive who was ready
to betray the land to the invaders, the beautiful
woman gained the confidence of Holof ernes and his
officers and brought them to her feet. Then, while
the captain lay in a druken stupor after a prolonged
banquet given in her honour, she being left alone
with him, Judith took his own scimitar and cut off
his head, putting it into her bag and giving it to
her handmaid who waited without. So they passed
unchallenged from the tent and out of the camp
and back to the city, with the token of triumph.
In the morning, the Israelites appeared in battle
array outside the city, and the Assyrians sent to
rouse their chieftain. When they found him dead,
there was a great panic and the whole mighty host
was struck with fear and fell easily into the hands
of the Israelites, being utterly routed and destroyed.
BOTTICELLI. —JUDITH WITH THE HEAD OF HOLOFERNES
mfR3i (Sailers: iRoom ot ^Botticelli 189
And Judith was acclaimed the deliverer of her peo-
ple, living in honour to a great age. " And there
was none that made the children of Israel any more
afraid in the days of Judith, nor a long time after
her death."
So ends the chronicle, and the heroine of it seems
to have won her way into the hearts of the painters
of the Renaissance quite as easily as she won her
way into the favour of the Assyrians. In art, she
is the syrgbol of the conquering power of woman--
hood. As one who brought deliverance and re-
demption to her people, she also figures in sacred
art as the emblem of the Virgin.
The pendant to this picture. Number 1158, also
by Botticelli, depicts the Death of Holofernes.
Both little panels are executed in the most delicate
manner and the figures are full of that peculiar
grace and action that later became such a notable
characteristic of the artist's work.
Number 1154, a good portrait of a melancholy
young man displaying a large medal, is another of
Botticelli's earlier works. In this example the in-
fluence of Antonio Pollaiuoli, elder brother of
Piero, is distinctly evident. The identity of the por-
trait is in question, and while formerly it was sup-
posed to be a certain Pico della Mirandola, it has
since been known merely as a Portrait of a Medal-
list. Quite recently, Miintz has suggested that it
190 Ubc Hrt of tbe mfttsi IPalace
may be a portrait of Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici,
but the ideotification is subject to considerable
question. It is interesting to note that the medal
is real, sunk into the wooden panel upon which the
portrait is painted, and~5ears~oh"ifs face the relief
profile of Cosmio the_ Elder. There is much char-
acter and excellent technique displayed in this
work.
One of Botticelli's finest pictures, and apparently
the only one of its kind from his brush, is found
in Number 1286, the Adoratii)n of the Magi. It is
also an early work, bearing plain evidence of the in-
fluence of Fra Filippb Lippi. In this most interes-
ting picture, paintedior theXihuTch of Sarita Maria
Novella^ the traditional representation of the scene
has been employed as a vehicle for the introduction
of many votive portraits of the members of the
great Medici family, excellently painted. Under
the guise of the! three kings are shown the elder
members. Cosirho il Vecchio, as the elder king,
kneels before the Child,' giving us the most faithful
portrait of the great leader that is known to be in
existence. Kneeling in the foreground, as the sec-
ond and third kings, are the two sons of Cosimo,
Piero^the Gouty and Gis^anni. The former is in
the centre of the composition in a dark red robe,
while the latter is immediately to the right. The
artist has been so diplomatic as to have avoided the
■Glffi3l Oailer^: iRoom of 3Bott(ceIli 191
indication of the precedence between these persoti-
ages. While the elder man is nearer the centre, he
seems to be engaged in some dispute with the
younger over this question of precedence. With all
his poetic instincts Botticelli was shrewd and khew
human nature well. He had also a large setlse of
humour. We can easily imagine him saying to
himself, as he painted the portraits of these broth-
ers, " Let them settle it." Standing immediately
behind Giovanni is Piero's son, Giuliatto, who was
murdered in the Cathedral on the outbreak of the
Pazzi conspiracy. This is a splendid pot*tt-ait.
Piero's other son, Lore nzo t he Magnificerlt, stands
with haughty mien, at the extreme left of the
picture, with his hands upon the hilt of his sword.
All of the other faces in the groups of the followers
of the Magi, with one possible exception, are like-
wise family portraits, with striking facial resem-
blances. The exception noted is the figure at the
extreme right foreground. Popular tradition has
identified this portrait as that of BotticelliJliittSelf,
although it is by no means certain that this is the
case. The face does not resemble othef known por-
traits of the artist. Vasari states that it Was the
success and fame of this picture that brought Botti-
celli to the notice of Pope Sixtus IV ahd resulted in
the artist's commission to decorate the walls of the
newly-opened Sistine ChapeLin.the Vatican, Com-
192 Ubc Hrt of tbe "ClfBsl ipalace
pletely establishing his reputation as a great painter.
It was during this period that his own unique
style was developed.
After his return to Florence, about 1484, Botti-
celli's work became much more dgfiniteljL-Character-
istic and consistent^ His Madonna ^f^ the Pome-
granate, Number 1289, is typical of this period. It
is a tondo, or round panel, containing, beside the
Madonna and^ Child, six beautiful angd figures,
beai-ihg roses and lilies and booksTairTnaglovsTof
warm celestial light. Several of them are said to
be portraits~of-childrenj:)f the Medici, and the mel-
ancholy Madonna herself is supposed to be a por-
trait of La Bella Simonetta, of whom we have
spoken in connection with the Primavera in the
Academy. The picture takes its name from the
cut pomegranate in the hand of the Virgin.
Another similar and in some ways more lovely
tondo is Number 1267 bis, commonly known as
the Madonna -of tbe-Magnificat,- sometimes called
by its. generic title, .Coronation of the Virgin. The
composition of this picture" isliuichTe'ss "formal and
much more graceful than that of the-one just pre-
viously iioled/ Here the Madonna sits at one side,
holding the Child in her lap, and engaged in writing
in a book held by an angel the words of the Magni-
ficat ; " My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my
spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour." As she
BOTTICELLI. —THE MAOOXXA OL' THE MAGXIFIC.'^
vIFICAT
XDlffisi (Ballerij: iRoom of Botticelli 193
leans forward to dip the pen in the ink, the Child,
His gaze directed toward heaven, puts out His tiny-
hand to guide hers in the writing, a symbol of the
divine inspiration of Mary's reply to the Saluta-
tion of Elizabeth. The words are recorded by
Saint Luke in the first chapter of his Gospel. The
face of the Virgin in this picture is evidently from
the same model as that in the other, but this is much
finer and more delicately lovely. Over her head
two angels hold a crown of little stars, while from
the banded vault of heaven shines a spiritual radi-
ance. As before, the attendant angels are Medici
portraits, the clothing of one of them, at the left,
being dotted with little units of design composed of
interlaced rings, an heraldic device of Lorenzo the
Magnificent. The hand of the Child grasps the
symbolic pomegranate, with the seeds displayed.
The face of the angel at the right is divinely sweet
and full of tenderest expression. In the distant
background is a dainty landscape.
One would hardly suspect the painter of such a
work as this of being a practical joker, but such
was certainly the case. It is probably to this pic-
ture that Vasari refers when he speaks of a copy
made of just such a picture by one of Botticelli's
pupils, a young man by the name of Biagio. The
copy was a good one and met with the master's
approval. Biagio desired to sell it, and Botticelli
194 Ubc art of tbe mmsi IPalace
found a purchaser. He instructed Biagio to hang
it well in a good light in the studio, and to go and
bring the purchaser to see it next day. This Biagio
did, but in the meantime Botticelli and another pu-
pil adroitly affixed odd caps of painted pasteboard
to the heads of all the figures in the picture, pri-
vately sending word to the prospective buyer as to
what they had done. The purchaser entered heartily
into the joke and came to look at the picture, launch-
ing at once into an elaborate speech in praise of it,
not allowing the horrified Biagio so much as an
opportunity to get in a word. At the end, the pur-
chaser took Biagio home with him and paid him
the price of the picture. The astonished pupil held
his peace and made his way quickly back to the
studio. He found the picture just wihere he had
left it, but minus the caps, which the ma:ster had
safely removed during Biagio's absence. This time
he gave expression to his astoni'shment, hardly
knowing whether or not he had been dreaming, and
Botticelli and the other pupils had little difficulty in
making the puzzled Biagio believe that the whole
thing was due to his own lively imagination, and
to the intoxication of his success in selling the
picture. A painting similar to this, supposed
to be the copy in question, now hangs in the
Louvre.
Strikingly akin to the Primavera in conception
mffi3i ©aller^: iRoom of aBotttcelU 19s
and execution is Number 39, the Birth of Venus,
painted for the same Medici Villa at CasteHo." ' The
goddess, fabled to have been borti of the sea-foam,
is here wafted to shore by the breath of the Zephyrs.
She stands upon the edge of a floating cockle-shell,
rand the flowery-robed figure of the Spring, on the
shore, holds out an embroidered mantle in which, to
wrap the nude form of the goddess. This Venus
is by no means the embodiment of the splendid
physical perfection of classic times. She is a slen-
der, almost ansemic type; a creature of the artifi-
cial life of later days. Half in innocence and half
in embarrassment, she hastens toward the -protect-
ing folds of the mantle held out to her. Her charm
is that of witchery and delicate reserve rather than
that of conscious power. 3Ee will be happier when
she has stepped upon the soft turf, is enveloped in
her flowing mantle, and has slipped away with the
Spring amid the leafy trees. It will be there that
one must go to seek her now. It is there that her
ardent devotees will most frequently find her. In
the thoroughly Botticellian face and form of the
goddess, we recognize again the likeness of Simon-
etta.
At one time, while Botticelli lived at Florence,
a cloth-weaver established his shop immediately
next door to the painter's home and studio. The
noise and jar of the looms were intolerable to San-
196 ubc art of tbe Tlimsi Palace
dro, as well as dangerous, for the house was
none too strongly built, and he protested to the
weaver, receiving only the reply that the latter could
and would do what he pleased in his own house.
Accordingly, Sandro retired to his own premises,
and caused a tremendous stone to be raised to the
top of his house and nicely balanced on the wall,
which was higher than that of his neighbour, so
that any unusual vibration would tend to precipi-
tate the great mass, with calamitous results, upon
the weaver's roof. The weaver watched the opera-
tion with misgiving, and when he saw what was
done, he stopped his looms and went to see Sandro,
protesting against the great danger. Without any
show of resentment, Sandro courteously replied that
he could and would do what he pleased in his own
house. Tied with his own cord, the weaver was
obliged to capitulate and take steps to abate the
nuisance against which Sandro had originally pro-
tested.
With this tale in mind, it is not difficult to con-
ceive of the appeal that was made to Botticelli's
imagination by an old story told by Lucian. It
seems that the ancient Greek painter Apelles was
maliciously accused of conspiracy against the
government by an envious rival artist. Apelles was
placed on trial, in peril of his life, and finally re-
leased. Wlhen the judgment had been given and he
VMsi Galleri^: IRoom of Botticelli 197
was declared innocent of the charges brought
against him, the painter made a picture represent-
ing the accusation of an innocent man by Calumny.
After the description of this picture, Botticelli com-
posed and painted his own Calumny of Apelles,
Number 1182. It is a fine piece of allegorical work.
The scene is set in an elaborately constructed and
beautifully decorated marble loggia, at one side of
which rises a judgment throne. Upon the throne
sits the judge. His ears are those of an ass. On
either side of him stands a female figure. Ignorance
and Suspicion, who grasp his long ears in their
hands and whisper fiercely into them. The judge's
face is harsh and disagreeable. In one bony hand he
holds a closed book, while he stretches out the other,
with an impatient gesture, toward a group standing
before the throne. This gesture is met by the simi-
larly extended arm of Envy, a forlorn and tattered
man, who stands in the front. Behind the figure
of Envy appears the superficially attractive form of
Calumny, as a young and beautiful girl. In one
hand she carries a fire-brand, and with the other
she drags in by the hair, the distressed figure of
Innocence, a nude young man who lies upon the
ground and raises his hands in supplication. As
the group advances, Calumny is waited upon by her
handmaids, Deceit and Malice, who put the last fin-
ishing touches to the dressing of her hair. Behind
198 Ube Hrt ot tbe T[lffi3t t)alace
this group stands Remorse, in the person of an
aged crone with torn garments. Her sour coun-
tenance is turned back toward the last figure, that
of the naked Truth, who advances with clear eye and
lovely face, and with upraised arm invoking divine
protection. In the end she will be heard and her
testimony will triumph.
Everything is movement and action throughout
the whole composition, action not confined alone to
the living figures, but even suggestively participated
in by the statues and reliefs that decorate the pillars,
and frieze of the loggia and the base of the
throne. In this respect, the picture is intensely
typical of Botticelli's later work. During this time
his love of action amounted to a veritable passion
and in some cases almost approached hysteria.
The loose draperies tucked up in juggling folds
are characteristic of his work during this
period.
All of these marked mannerisms are present, to
a less extreme degree, in the Annunciation, Number
1316. This picture is undoubtedly from a design
by Botticelli, although its execution, in great meas-
ure, seems to be by another hand. It was painted
about the year 1490 for a chapel in the now sup-
pressed convent of Santa Maria Maddalena dei
Pazzi. The Virgin turns from her devotions to
greet the angelic visitor. Her robe falls loosely
TllfR3t Oallet^: iRoom of Botticelli 199
■atid smoothly, but the .ang^el's garments are all
rufHed and agitated by his flight. Kneeling in re-
spect and leaning forward in eagerness, he delivers
his message, the final words of which are inscribed
in the panel below him: "The Holy Ghost shall
come upon thee, and the power of the Most High
shall overshadow thee." The Virgin modestly bows
her head, with gesture of humility. The words of
her answer are in the panel below her : " Behold, the
handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according
to thy word." Just outside of the door appears a
small garden, enclosed within a low wall. It is the
" Hortus conclusus," one of the symbols of the
Madonna taken from the Song of Solomon : — "A
garden inclosed is my sister, my bride." The dis-
tant landscape lends a pleasing variety to the com-
position.
Number 3436 is an unpleasing example of Bot-
ticelli's very late work, executed under the all-per-
vading influence of Leonardo da Vinci. It is an
Adoration of the Magi, a huddled confusion of
numberless figures, backed by great masses of rock
and distant mountains. From three separate direc-
tions, the trains of the Magi come, meeting at the
feet of the new-born King. It seems evident that
even Botticelli himself was dissatisfied with his
work, for he executed only the cartoon. The actual
painting was done by a much later and less master-
2CX3 Ubc art of tbe TIlfHsi Palace
ful hand. Much, too, was left unfinished. Nothing
is known of the history of this picture, and it has
only recently bfeen brought from the store-rooms of
the Gallery.
CHAPTER XIV
THE UFFIZI gallery: THE ROOM OF LEONARDO
In the Room of Leonardo, directly adjoining that
of Botticelli, are found several other decorative
panels by Piero Pollaiuolo, belonging to the cycle
of the Mercatanzia Virtues of which we have
spoken. They are Number 69, Hope, much re-
painted to repair damage; Number 71, Temperance,
in worse condition, even, than Hope; and Number
y2,. Faith, the worst of the lot. They are worthy
only of passing note, although some details of the
drawing are moderately good and fairly well pre-
served.
Near at hand is a nude figure that bears a striking
resemblance to that of Botticelli's Venus, although
it is reversed. It is a Venus by Lorenzo di Credi,
Number 3452, and seems undoubtedly to have been
inspired by Botticelli's great picture, if not actually
a varied copy therefrom. It came into the collection
from a villa near Florence.
In Number 1305 is the Madonna and Saints
painted by Domenico Veneziano for the high altar
of the Church of Santa Lucia in the Via de' Bardi.
This is the only picture from the brush of this
202 XEbe Hrt ot tbe mffist iPalace
artist to be found in the Florentine galleries, and
the only one in existence that is of undoubted au-
thenticity. Very few pictures attributed to Domen-
ico Veneziano are now in existence anywhere, in
fact. He belongs to the early fifteenth century
group of Florentines, being the last important
painter, of the Gothic \Period. He is presumed to
have been born in Venice about the year 1400,
whence his accepted surname. This altar-piece is
fair in drawing, showing the influence of Masaccio
and Donatello, but it is badly re-painted in silly
combinations of pink and green. The saints are
John the Baptist, Nicholas, Francis and Lucy, the
latter carrying her eyes in a dish.
Santa Lucia, with the " bright, beaming eyes,"
the Virgin-Martyr " of all cruelty the foe," is the
messenger chosen by the Madonna in Dante's In-
ferno to bear her word to Beatrice. According to
the old legends, Santa Lucia was a native of Syra-
cuse, of which city she is the patroness. Gifted
with eyes of remarkable brilliancy and beauty, she
was ardently wooed by a young pagan who was
enamoured of her loveliness, and who romantically
asserted that her eyes pursued him always, giving
him no rest day or night. Lucia had early adopted
Christianity, and vowed her maidenhood to her
Saviour. Fearing lest her beautiful eyes might be
the means of bringing evil upon her wooer as well
mmst (Bailers: iRoom of Xeonar&o 203
as upon herself, she cut them out with a sharp awl
and sent them to him in a dish, beseeching him to
leave her in peace. Struck with remorse, the young
man acceded to her request and also himself adopted
Christianity. Shortly thereafter, Lucia's eyes
were miraculously restored to her, more brilliant
and beautiful than before. After a life of self-
denial and true Christian service, she died a martyr
at the hands of the Roman governor of Sicily,
her neck being pierced with a sword, at the be-
ginning of the fourth century. She is the patroness
of the labourer and is invoked against diseases of
the eyes. Occasionally she is represented in art
with a lighted lamp in her hand, symbolic of the
meaning of her name, Lucia, light, the type of Il-
luminating Grace.
Cosimo Rosselli's Adoration of the Magi, Num-
ber 65, is deserving of no detailed study, being
over-crowded with figures and almost lacking in
narrative or artistic interest.
Paolo Uccello's Battle Scene, Number 52, is a
strange work, executed about the middle of the
fifteenth century, with no apparent purpose other
than that of demonstrating certain problems in per-
spective. According to Vasari's account, Paolo de-
voted much of his time to the scientific study of
perspective, largely stating and developing the rules
gf the art that were universally employed by his
204 Ube art of tbe mtfist Palace
contemporaries and successors. Sacrificing his own
success as a painter to his infatuation for technical
problems, Paolo made the greater adiievements of
later artists possible. The good old gossip, to whose
accounts every student of art history must fre-
quently refer, gives us an amusing word-picture of
Paolo in his studio, deeply engrossed in the solu-
tion of his problems, forgetting his mieals and
ignoring the necessity for rest. To the frenzied
protests of his good wife he gives only a reluctant
and murmuring response : " Oh, this delightful
perspective ! " It will easily be noted that in the
painting under discussion the artist has purposely
arranged every linear detail of form and composi-
tion to add realism to the depth of the distant land-
scape background. Substantially similar paintings
by Uccello are in the galleries in London and
Paris.
Number 1288 is an interesting Annunciation of
somewhat questionable authorship, now usually ac-
cepted as the work of Andrea Verrocchio, master
of Leonardo da Vinci. By some critics it is as-
signed to Leonardo himself, and in general style
there is much about the picture that suggests his
band. Much of the technical detail, the manner
and method oi handling the pigments and their
effective quality, however, is strongly indicative
of Verrocchio. Here the Virgin is seated within
TUfCisi (Bailer^: iRoom of OLeonar&o 205
the Enclosed Garden, which in this case, takes the
form of the grassy terrace of a Florentine villa.
Before her is the reading-desk, whose base is richly
decorated with heavy carved Renaissance ornament,
such as was frequently designed and executed by
Verrocchio and the popular sculptors of his time.
On the desk lies the symbolic Book of Wisdom,
between the pages of which the Virgin holds her
fingers. Her face is calm and controlled, but her
surprise is betrayed by her raised left hand. The
attitude of the angel is completely traditional, but
the figure is very effectively painted. Beyond the
wall, in the grove of dark-foliaged trees, the sym-
bolic cypress, emblematic of the Virgin, points
toward heaven. This is the tree that has for cen-
turies been chosen as the most striking feature of
many a beautiful example of the art of the land-
scape gardener in Italy. It is a particular favourite
in the grounds of churches and convents and around
the borders of the burial places. In a degree much
greater than usual, the mystical subject of the An-
nunciation here receives the treatment of a land-
scape. The distant water and the mountain of
delicate blue are strikingly suggestive of the later
work of Leonardo. This picture was painted origi-
nally for the Convent of Monte Oliveto, near Flor-
ence. It has been freely repainted in almost every
part excepting the landscape.
2o6 ■JEbe Htt of tbe XUffisi palace
Number 1252, an Adoration of the Magi, is un-
doubtedly by Leonardo himself, having been ordered
from the master in 1481 by a certain convent near
Florence, now destroyed. As was the case with so
many of the works of this restless " Wizard of the
Renaissance," the painting was left unfinished after
a few years of work on it. The master was about
thirty years of age when it was begun. No efforts
were ever made to finish or restore this work and
so it comes down to us just as Leonardo left it,
only the under-painting having been done on it. An
intimate inspection of the picture, however, reveals
the mastery and versatility of its creator. Even in
the mere sketchy parts of the background, where
almost nothing beyond the original drawing is
found, the work displays an ability and a knowledge
combined with a careful craftsmanship rarely found
in the preliminary work of any painter.
Leonardo's versatility was his besetting sin. His
mind was that of a creator and he felt hampered
and hindered by the slowness of the necessary phys-
ical processes of creation. With leaps and bounds,
as it were, he plunged in imagination through a
piece of work, often getting the finishing varnish
ready for a picture before he had even put brush
to the canvas. Frequently he tired of a work
when it was no more than begun. He seemed to
begrudge time spent on labour the result of which
"UlfKst (Ballerg: iRoom of Xeonar&o 207
was definitely determined. His experimenter's in-
stinct craved new problems continually. He was
centuries beyond his time. Modern aviators turn
with astonishment to Leonardo's treatise on the
flight of birds. In addition to being a master-
painter, he was also a notable sculptor, architect,
engineer, scientist, mathematician, scholar, poet,
warrior, courtier and diplomat. The weird dra-
matic strength of the composition of Leonardo's
Adoration and the vitality and action of his indi-
vidual figures therein are eminently characteristic
of the remarkable temper of the master. Few
painters have had a wider or more effective in-
fluence upon art than Leonardo da Vinci. His best
extant works are not found in Florence.
CHAPTER XV
THE UFFIZI GALLERY : THE ROOM OF MICHELANGELO
When the jovial Carmelite, Fra Filippo Lippi,
in the year 1456, was at work upon the frescoes in
the Duomo at Prato, he received the appointment
to the position of chaplain to the nuns of the local
Convent of Santa Margherita. While there he was
much struck with the beauty of a young nun, Lucre-
zia Buti, an orphan whose name we have previously
had occasion to mention. He persuaded her to sit
for him as a model for a figure of the Virgin that
he was painting and before the work was done he
had fallen violently in love with her! To a large
extent, the talented monkish painter was his own
lawmaker. Shortly after this episode, during the
excitement of the ceremony of the Exhibition of
the Sacred Cintola in the Piazza of the Duomo, Fra
Filippo made off with his not unwilling Lucrezia,
keeping her in hiding until their son Filippino was
born, the following year. Great was the scandal
and gossip in Prato, which much distressed the
abbass of the convent, and it was not long before
four more nuns escaped. Radical measures were
208
XIlffi3i ©allerg: iRoom of /iDicbelangelo 209
necessary, and all of the fugitives were caught and
obliged to return to the convent, including Lucrezia.
Fra Filippo was not pleased, but he waited his time,
and before another year was out Lucrezia again
escaped and took refuge in Fra Filippo's home near
the convent. By this time, Fra Filippo's influential
patrons took up the matter and Cosimo de' Medici
succeeded in having the pair absolved from their
vows and given permission to marry. While they
never formally availed themselves of this latter
permission, they lived together thereafter in hap-
piness and fidelity.
The face of Lucrezia often appears in Fra Filip-
po's paintings. In the Room of Michelangelo, ad-
joining that of Leonardo, one such example appears
in the Madonna and Angels, Number 1307. This
is one of Fra Filippo's most delightful works. It
was painted for tihe private chapel of Cosimo the
Elder in the Medici Palace in Florence. The Vir-
gin appears to be resting upon a beautifully carved
seat placed in the embrasure of a window or low
door through which one catches a glimpse of a
distant rocky landscape. The Virgin places her
hands together in a gesture of adoration, but her
gaze is not directed at the Child, who holds out His
arms to her. Instead, she looks down upon the ir-
resistibly merry face of a very boyish, snub-nosed
little angel who helps to support the Child. Tradi-
8IO Zbe Stt ot tbe Hlfilsf IPfllace
tion has it that this friendly little fellow is no other
tiian the painter's son, Filippino. If that is the case,
we hardly blame his mother for looking at hifti. She
plays her part in this "sacred" group but ill.
Indeed, the painter has not even dressed hef for the
part, for he has put pearls into her hair ! Well, it
is just a happy little family group, with a bit of
religious colour given to It, — that is all. It is
simple and direct in its treatment, and for its sim-
plicity we love it. One can hardly resist the temp-
tation to reach out and give that little fellow's nose
a friendly tweak. Fra Filippo never learned how
to paint children until he had one of his own.
This little fellow, himself, became a worthy
painter not very many years later. Number 1549,
also a Madonna adoring the Child, is attributed to
Filippino. It is a yery lovely creation, and breathes
a gentle and beautiful spirit, being simply and
effectively drawn and painted In rich colour. Be-
yond the wall of the Enclosed Garden is a most
charming landscape. This is one of the most pleas-
ing and generally satisfactory renderings of the
subject ever produced by any painter.
Lorenzo di Credi's Annunciation, Number 1160,
is an admirable example of what an able painter
can do with a traditional subject, without violating
a jot or tittle of the tradition. In every important
element, and in much that is relatively unimportant,
FRA FILIPPO LIPPI. — THE MADONNA AND ANGELS
mrnsi Oaller^: iRoom of /llMcbelangelo 211
Lorenzo has followed closely the works of the
painters who laboured a century before his time.
The postures of the figures, both individually and
relatively considered, the arrangement of the loggia
and its door and windows, large and small, the gar-
den and landscape beyond, all are old in conception.
But Lorenzo has certainly clothed the old elements
with a new vitality. The soft brilliancy of this
picture and its daintiness and delicacy are fascina-
ting. Its spirit is that of the real Renaissance. In
the predella, below, are three dull-coloured panels
depicting the Creation of Eve, the Fall of Adam
and Eve (the serpent has the head of a woman),
and the Expulsion from Eden. The meaning is not
difficult to read. Through the Woman came the
Fall and the Curse; and through the Woman also
came the Redemptive Fulfilment of the Prophecy
contained within the Curse. In sacred art Mary is
regarded as a second Eve, whose Seed shall bruise
the head of the Serpent.
The Pollaiuolo brothers, Antonio and Piero,
worked jointly upon an altar-piece. Number 1301,
for the memorial chapel of the Cardinal of Portu-
gal in the Church of San Miniato. The chapel was
ordered by the Portugese court as a funeral monu-
ment to the king's nephew, Prince James, who
died in Florence while on a journey to Germany as
a Papal legate. The altar-piece, whose frame is
212 tCbe Hrt of tbe "dfOsi palace
still in situ in the church, presents the dignified fig-
ures of Saints James, Vincent and Eustace. Antonio
Pollaiuolo, the elder brother, is responsible for the
design and the painting of the figure of Saint James,
in the centre, as well as the rich deacon's robes of
Saint Vincent, on the left. The remainder of the
painting is interesting as being the earliest known
work from his brush. Prince James was Arch-
bishop of Lisbon and Cardinal of Saint Eustace.
Saint Vincent is special patron of Lisbon.
Luca Signorelli is represented here by several
good pictures. Number 129 1 is a round Holy
Family, unusually well composed and very effective
in beauty and dignity. All of the lines in the com-
position are graceful and harmonious, reminding
one of nothing so much as the flamboyant tracery
in a Gothic window.
Number 74 is another tondo by Signorelli, a Ma-
donna and Child in a flowery meadow, painted for
Lorenzo de' Medici, and for a long time hung in
the Medici villa at Castello. In the background of
this composition are several nude figures of shep-
herds, painted with all the skill and mastery of anat-
omy for which Signorelli was so famous. They
serve no particular purpose, but seem rfierely to
be the exuberant product of the artist's passion for
anatomy.
Number 1298, a predella belonging to an un-
xniffi3f Gallery?: iRoom of /TOtcbelanQelo 213
known altar-piece, is one of Signorelli's finest
works. Although small, the three panels that com-
prise the work are painted with such mastery that
they almost produce the impression of large and im-
portant works. The scenes represented are the An-
nunciation, the Nativity, and the Adoration of the
Magi. The Annunciation is especially good, and is
often classed as one of the finest existing represen-
tations of the subject. Particularly noteworthy is
the figure of Gabriel in this panel, as is also the
dainty landscape setting of the scene.
Number 1547, a life-size Crucifixion with Saints,
of doubtful attribution, is variously assigned to
Signorelli, or Perugino, or both. It is not very
satisfactory as an example of the work of either
painter.
Domenico Ghirlandajo, the master of Michel-
angelo, is represented in this room by two character-
istic pictures. Number 1295 is a tondo representing
the Adoration of the Magi, painted, as the date on
the block of stone in the foreground indicates, in
1487. The work was done for Giovanni Torna-
buoni, one of the artist's most munificent patrons,
and for many years hung in his home. The two
kneeling figures with the faces in profile, in the right
foreground, are said to be portraits of members of
the Tornabuoni family. The Garland-maker's love
of the antique is betrayed in the details of his pic-
214 ^be Hrt of tbe mmsi palace
ture, recalling tihe Interesting panel depicting the
same subject, in the Academy, painted by Domenico
only two years before. In this later picture, a much
larger number of figures are introduced, somewhat
overcrowding the composition, but they are largely
kept away from' the centre of the scene, so that their
presence is not obtrusive. The face of the Virgin
is most unusually natural and girlish, full of a
quiet solicitude and modesty, but without loss of
dignity and idealism. It is the best thing in the
picture. In the upper left distance is the scene of
the Annunciation to the Shepherds, handled pre-
cisely as the artist handled it in the Adoration in
the Academy. This work is worthy of the closest
inspection of all its finely-wrought detail, a typical
product of the goldsmith-painter's genius.
Of substantially similar feeling, but varied execu-
tion, is Ghirlandajo's Madonna and Saints, Num-
ber 1297, painted for the high altar of the Church
of San Giusto, destroyed during the sixteenth cen-
tury. This is one of the artist's earlier works,
displaying his characteristic love of detail in orna-
ment, which can be seen to advantage in the remark-
able success with which he has solved the technical
problem of painting in correct perspective the pat-
tern of the Oriental rug on the steps of the throne.
The most interesting figures in the picture are
those of San Giusto, Archbishop of Lyons, on the
TIlfti3t (Bailer^: iRoom ot /iDicbelangclo 21s
left, and San Zenobio, Bishop of Florence, on the
right, at the foot of the throne. Both are fine crea-
tions and well painted. On the steps beside the Vir-
gin stand the great Archangels. Michael, the pro-
tector of the Churdh Militant, is on the left with his
drawn sword, while Raphael, guardian of humanity,
stands on the right, carrying his little box contain-
ing the charm that played such an important part in
the story of Tobias. The four angels at the back,
with blossoms in their hair, are very pretty figures.
The Madonna is dignified, but, in other respects,
lacks the significance of Ghirlandajo's later work.
The Child is very well painted. With a quiet glance
of approval. He raises His little hand in benediction
toward San Giusto, who receives the blessing with
his hand on his breast. Action and gesture here
indicate that San Giusto, name saint of the church
for which the picture was painted, is the most im-
portant earthly personage in the group. San Zeno-
.bio is present out of compliment and as the official
rejiresentative of the city. Above the entablature in
the upper background appear the symbolic cy-
presses, together with other trees laden with ripe
fruit, — symbolic of " The fruits of the Spirit —
joy, peace and love." To the traditional vase of
lilies in the foreground, other common flowers
have been added, all dedicated as loving offerings
to the Virgin. During the troublous years just
2i6 Zbc Hrt of tbe Xllffi3f palace
preceding the final unification of the kingdom of
Italy, this picture was preserved in the Church of
La Calza in Florence, and was purchased in 1857
for the National Gallery in London. But the awa-
kening spirit of the government would not permit
the picture to be taken away from Florence, and it
was placed in the Uffizi Gallery.
Among the most important pictures in this room
is Michelangelo's tondo of the Holy Family, Num-
ber 1239, sometimes called the Doni Madonna.
When it was painted, the great artisF had just at-
tained the height of his early fame, havrpg recently
completed his wonderful statue of David. A certain
Florentine citizen, Angelo Doni by name, a friend
and patron of Michelangeb and a great lover of
art, desired a painting from the master. So Michel-
angelo undertook the work, executing it in oil on
wood, the only finished easel picture that can cer-
tainly be attributed to him. Personally, he despised
the medium, 'holding that fresco, was the only
painter's medium fit for a real man to work in. But,
nevertheless, he finished the work and sent it to Doni
by messenger, together with a brief note demanding
sixty ducats in payment for the picture. Doni was
well aware of the fact that the price asked was far
below the actual worth of the picture, but he was
a man of close impulses in financial matters, and
he feigned astonishment at the price, giving the
MICHEl.AXCIEI.O. -Tin-: DOXI JtADONXA
xarasi ©allerg: iRoom of /iDicbelangelo 217
messenger only forty ducats and telling him to bear
word to his master that the. amount was quite
enough. When the painter received the reply, he
was angry and sent the messenger back to the pur-
chaser with the word that the price of the picture
was now one hundred ducats, being the sum of the
amount first asked by Michelangelo plus the amount
offered by Doni. Moreover, said the painter, if
Doni did not wish to purchase the picture at the
new price, he was to send it back. Now Doni
really valued the work highly, but could not bring
himself to meet Michelangelo's terms without fur-
ther haggling, so he still retained the picture and
sent back word that he would be quite willing to
pay the sixty ducats first asked. Upon receipt of
the word, Michelangelo flew into a rage and raised
his price again, to the amount of a hundred and
forty ducats. Eventually the two came together
and effected a friendly compromise, Doni retaining
the picture and Michelangelo remitting one-half of
his last price and accepting seventy ducats for the
work.
When Michelangelo designed this picture, he was
profoundly impressed with Signorelli's tondo, Num-
ber 74, and largely drew his inspiration therefrom.
It is plainly evident, however, at the first glance,
that Number 1239 is the work of one whose most
dominant instinct was that of a sculptor. The three
2i8 Ubc art of tbe Xlimsi Palace
main figures in the picture are so composed that
they might easily be cut from a single block of stone.
They are all superbly conceived and modelled, the
Child, in particular, being much more natural and
much less athletic than most of MichelangeloJs
" putti." In the background, seated upon a curious
structure of semi-circular form, bearing some re-
semblance to a Roman theatre, are a number of
nude figures, of classic type, evidently suggested
by Signorelli's shepherds; while over a parapet
gazes the child John the Baptist, bearing his little
rustic cross, and clothed in his woolly garment of
sheep-skin.
The whole style and spirit of the composition
is grand and classic. It presents a better appear-
ance in the photograph than in the original, for the
colouring, largely inspired by Ghirlandajo, is very
gaudy and unpleasant. The drawing, however,
displays the artist's thorough mastery of his
method and his complete knowledge of anatomy.
Michelangelo knew the human form so well that he
ventured very frequently to take what might be
called creative liberties with it, for the purpose of
expressing and accentuating his ideas, — those
super-human ideas that frequently could not be ade-
quately expressed in any other way.
CHAPTER XVI
THE UFFIZI gallery: THE ROOMS OF THE TUSCAN
SCHOOL
The four Rooms of the Tuscan School contain
a number of important works that may very prop-
erly be considered together in one chapter. One of
these rooms, formerly known as the First Room of
the Tuscan School, is now called the Room of the
Maps of Tuscany, because of the old painted maps
with which its walls are decorated. Previous to
1906, these interesting historic relics were covered
by the pictures that were hung in the room, but now
all are displayed on easels and the maps may be
closely inspected. The other rooms, now known as
the First, Second, and Fourth Rooms of the Tuscan
School are located adjacent to the long East Cor-
ridor, easily reached from one another, and so we
will consider the pictures hung therein together.
This portion of the collection has been subjected
to frequent re-arrangement.
Among the earliest pictures of importance in
these rooms are noted three small but exquisite
panels by Fra Angelico, the predella scenes belong'-
219
220 Zbc Hrt of tbe "Qimsi Palace
ing to the master's Coronation of the Virgin, Num-
ber 1290, in the Room of Lorenzo Monaco. They
are eminently worthy to be associated with the
popular altar-piece, and it is to be hoped that some
day they will all be re-united. Number 1178 rep-
resents the Marriage of the Virgin, Number 1162
the Naming of John the Baptist, and Number 1184
the Death of the Virgin, each composition display-
ing the characteristic delicacy and refined beauty so
strikingly noted in the main panel of the altar-piece.
A small fragment of fresco containing the Head
of an Old Man, of masterly execution. Number
1 167, has been variously attributed to Masaccio,
Botticelli, and Filippino Lippi, although the former
seems to have the better claim. It is a remarkably
fine piece of work, simply handled, but with great
vigour and expression and character. It is one of
those numerous pictures that came to the Gallery
from private hands, and its history is unknown.
The style is that of the early fifteenth century.
Working under the combined influence of Ma-
saccio, Donatello and Paolo Uccello, Andrea dal
Castagno was one of the earliest painters to attack
'the problems of natural gesture and expression.
From the Convento degli Angeli comes his fresco
of the Crucifixion, Number 12, where it was found
on a cell wall, covered over with whitewash. In
composition it consists simply of the Christ on the
VltRsi (Ballets: Znscan Scbool 221
Cross, with the Virgin and Saint John the Evan-
gehst, flanked by Saints Benedict and Romualdo.
The figure of the Crucified is exceedingly well mod-
elled, but by far the best in the picture is that of
Saint John, who clasps his 'hands over his breast and
turns his head to gaze upon the loved form of his
Lord, with expression of the deepest anguish. This
figure is one of the great works of the middle of
the fifteenth century. Later painters created many
good and effective figures, but few have surpassed
this one for strength and emotion combined with
simple grandeur.
Piero della Francesca was one of those fifteenlii
century painters, under the influence of Uccello,
who devoted much of their time to the scientific
technique of their art. Although a pupil of such a
student of nature as Domenico Veneziano, Piero
was as well-known for his writing in the field of
pure mathematics as for his ability in handling the
brush. A famous double portrait by this artist,
Number 1300, is the only accepted example of his
work in the Uffizi. This splendid production, prob-
ably never excelled by Piero, presents the likenesses
of Federigo di Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino, and
Battista Sforza, his wife. They are both compara-
tively young, for the picture seems to have been
painted to honour the occasion of their marriage in
1459. At least, it was painted not very long after
222 Ubc att of tbe HlfBsi palace
that date. Upon the back of the panel are two alle-
gorical compositions representing the Duke and
Duchess approaching one anotiher, riding in magnifi-
cent cars and surrounded by symbolic figures of
Virtues. For almost two centuries these portraits
were carefully preserved in the ducal palace at
Urbino, where they were seen and studied by
Raphael.
Alesso Baldovinetti's Annunciation, Number 56,
deserves mention as a thoroughly characteristic
work. The Madonna is not unusual, but the Angel
■seems to be afraid that he will arrive too late to
get into the picture, and discards all dignity as he
hurries along. Much more pleasing and satisfac-
tory is the same artist's Madonna and Saints, Num-
ber 60, unmistakably the best existing panel from
his brush. With symbolism that we have dwelt
upon elsewhere at length, the Madonna sits upon a
throne, backed by golden tapestry, in the middle of
a garden with cypresses. This was a Medici com-
mission, as the Saints will testify, and it originally
hung over the altar in the private chapel of the
Villa at Caflfagiolo. The witnesses are Saints Lo-
renzo, Giuliano, and Anthony the Abbot, on the
right; John the Baptist, Cosimo and Damiano, on
the left; Francis and Dominick in front. These
personages were indeed chosen with rare diplo-
macy. All the figures Eire good and thp wliole pic-
xafH3t (Balleri?: UuBcan Scbool 223
ture is in excellent condition and possessed of a
■quaint diarm that must have made it a favourite
with its original owners. Such favourites are usu-
ally well cared for and carefully preserved from
harm.
Under Number 1153 are two of the best paint-
ings ever executed by Antonio Pollaiuolo, two min-
iatures in a single frame, neither much larger than
a post-card. On these little panels Antonio painted,
entirely with his own hand, two tiny scenes from
the story of Hercules. In the first the hero slays
the Hydra, and in the second he strangles Antaeus.
Originally there were three panels, the subject of
the missing one being the Killing of the Lion. The
large effect of these little pictures is accounted for
by the fact that they are miniature replicas of large
canvases painted in 1460 for Lorenzo de' Medici.
The small panels were also the property of Lorenzo.
Despite the small size of the figures, they are all
rendered with wonderful skill and accurate knowl-
edge of muscular action. It was not for nothing
thai Antonio had dissected so many human bodies
and carefully studied their structure. His famil-
iarity with the anatomy of the human form was
unusual in his day. Not less worthy of note are
the scenic accessories of the pictures. The land-
scapes are faithfully painted from nature, showing
the valley of the Arno a short distance below Flor-
224 XCbe Hrt ot tbe mmsf iPalace
ence. In one of the pictures the walls and towers
•of the city can be seen. The very unsuitable char-
acter of the frame in which the little panels are
fitted would seem to indicate that they were orig-
inally intended to serve some special purpose, such
as the decorations for a costly casket or other arti-
cle of furniture.
Melozzo da Forli, pupil of Piero della Francesca,
is represented by a very charming figure of the
Angel of the Annunciation, painted on one of two
Organ Doors, Number 1563. The light drapery,
clinging to the limbs of the figure in curious, angu-
lar folds, is oddly effective. The whole figure is
full of pleasing action. The Virgin, on the other
Door, Number 1564, is poorly painted, by a very
inferior hand.
In Number 65, a Madonna in Glory, Cosimo
Rosselli displays the influence of Baldovinetti.
This picture, sometimes called by the indeterminate
name of Madonna della Stella, of the Star, is more
generally satisfactory than most of Rosselli's work.
It is in oil on wood, and is one of the collection that
came from Santa Maria Nuova.
Pietro Pollaiuolo's Portrait of Galeazzo Sforza,
Duke of Milai], Number 30, is regarded as the art-
ist's finest work. It is suspected, 'however, that the
work is not an original portrait painted from sit-
tings, but copied from some earlier Milanese work
lUffisi (Bailers; Uuscan Scbool 225
now lost. In any event it is good and full of
strength and character.
W'hen the monks of the convent of San Donato
a Scopeto were disappointed by the failure of the
commission given by them to Leonardo da Vinci,
to which our attention was directed when speaking
of Leonardo's unfinished Adoration, Number 1252,
they turned to Filippino Lippi. The picture that he
painted for them, in 1496, to take the place for
w'hich Leonardo's work was intended, is Number
1257. While this composition is overcrowded with
figures, which are grouped apparently without
much thought for effect, and while there is little of
general beauty in the picture as a wliole, it is nev-
ertheless quite interesting as a study of Filippino's
advanced style. It fairly teems with the intricacies
of the High Renaissance, into which the simplicities
of tradition have been translated. Numerous fig-
ures are portraits, one of the best being that of
Pier Francesco de' Medici, in the character of an
astrologer, holding a quadrant, kneeling in the
foreground at the extreme left.
Much more pleasing, even if simple and conven-
tional, is Filippino Lippi's Madonna and Saints,
Number 1268. The dominating influence in this
picture is that of Filippino's master, Botticelli,
shown both in its grouping and in its clear and
luminous colour. In a niche of fine Renaissance
226 Zbc Htt Of tbe mma ipalace
design sits the pensive Madonna. Over her head
two fluttering angels with charming faces suspend
an elaborate crown. In the summit of the vaulting
of the niche appears a shield bearing the arms of
the Florentine people* The picture was painted for
a council-chamber in the Palazzo Vecchio. The
witnesses are chosen for Florentine popularity, on
the left Saint John- the Baptist and Saint Augus-
tine (erroneously catalogued as Saint Victor), on
the right Saint Bernard and Saint Zenobio, the
latter identified as a Florentine bishop by the her-
aldic lily on his morse. The picture was at one
time inexplicably attributed to Ghirlandajo. The
date of its execution, 1485, is inscribed below.
That Lorenzo di Credi's training in Verrocchio's
studio, where he worked beside the young Leonardo
da Vinci, was very complete and thorough is a fact
incontestably demonstrated by the examples of his
work in the Uffizi. In addition to the many relig-
ious pictures of conventional type executed by Lo-
renzo, there is here one of a different order, a most
striking and worthy portrait. Number 1163. For
a long time, in the early catalogues of the Gallery,
this portrait was attributed to Holbein, and iden-
tified as Martin Luther. The attribution to Lo-
renzo seems unquestioned, although the identifica-
tion is still a matter of some doubt. Vasari ac-
cepted it as a portrait of Verrocchio, and it is so
FILIPPINO LIPPI. — MADONNA AND SAINTS
"dftisi Callers: Uuscan Scbool 227
oatalcgued at present. So let it be. The matter
is of small moment. In any event, Lorenzo has
here given us one of the great portraits in the Gal-
lery. Gazing at it, we are unconscious of the means
employed to produce the effect, but only conscious
of the effect of a strong personality. This is a
man of character, ability, talent, intellect, will, self-
control, judgment, — a man to know and respect
and love. The accessories of wall and window and
distant touch of landscape are absurdly simple, but
carefully calculated to complete the impression of
character.
Four other pictures, companion pieces to one
another, are in these rooms. They were painted
to be hung around a large crucifix, and are worthy
examples of Lorenzo's ordinary work, in oil on
iwood. Number 13 13 represents Christ and the
Samaritan; Number 131 1 is a Noli me tangere;
Number 1314 is an Annunciation, especially good;
Number 1168, the Virgin and Saint John the Evan-
gelist.
Piero di Cosimo, pupil and assistant of Cosimo
Rosselli, is well represented here in two pictures.
The first of these, Number 81, is an Immaculate
Conception, a subject of greater popularity in the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries than in the fif-
teenth. Piero was active during the last part of
the fifteenth century and the first part of the six-
228 Ube Hrt of tbe XOLfHst IPalace
teenth. This picture is one of the earliest success-
ful representations of the subject. It is a mystical
composition in which the Virgin stands with her
face turned heavenward, in a glow of rapture,
while over her hovers the Dove of the Holy Spirit,
descending in rays of brilliant light. The picture
was painted for the Church of the Annunziata, and
the witnesses are appropriately selected. Saints
Margaret and Catherine kneel in adoration. Saints
Peter and John the Evangelist are standing by,
together with San Filippo, a member of the Order
to which the Church belongs, namely that of the
Servi, and the blessed Saint Antonio, Archbishop
of Florence, the friend of Fra Angelico.
Vasari goes into extravagant raptures over a
smaller panel by Piero di Cosimo, Number 13 12,
depicting Perseus liberating Andromeda from the
Dragon. It is quite an interesting work, with many
good figures, some of which are said to have been
designed by Leonardo da Vinci. The composition
may be compared with interest, with that of the
still smaller panel by the same artist depicting the
same subject, in the East Corridor, Number 83.
Raffaelo Capponi, a comparatively little-known
Florentine painter, almost exactly contemporary
wifih Piero di Cosimo and working under the influ-
ence of Perugino and Pinturicchio, is represented
by a good Madonna and Saints, Number 22, execu-
ALBERTIXELLI. — THE N'ISITATION
mmsi Oallers:' Uwscan Scbool 229
ted in 1500. It came into the Uffizi Collection from
Santa Maria Nuova. The most interesting features
of this work are the excellent portraits of the
donors of the picture, an unknown Florentine citi-
zen and his wife, who are presented by Saint Fran-
cis and Saint Zenobio.
Throughout these Rooms of the Tuscan School,
it is interesting to note the remarkable success of
many a piece of work done by an obscure and com-
paratively mediocre painter. When the full spirit
of the Renaissance was in the very air of Tuscany,
everywhere men felt its irresistible influence and
were swept by its power to heights of achievement
that would else have been for them unattainable.
A very striking exajmple of this is the Visitation,
Number 1259, by Mariotto Albertinelli. It is his
finest work, and one of the best and most popular
representations of the subject to be found in the
whole realm of pictorial art. The date 1503 is here
found on the small tablet in the centre of each dec-
orated pillar supporting the conventional portico
before which the meeting of Mary and Elizabeth is
usually depicted. The composition is truly fine and
simple, and the whole treatment of the subject is
deeply sympathetic and sincerely human. The
work eminently deserves its popularity. It was
painted for the church belonging to the Congrega-
tion of the Priests of Saint Martin and Saint Eliza-
230 Ubc art ot tbe xntttsi Palace
beth. Taken first to the Academy in the eight-
eenth century, it was eventually transferred to tihe
Uffizi.
Comparatively little is known directly of Mari-
otto Albertinelli save the date of his birth, 1474,
and that of his death, 1515, and the fact that he
almost completely sunk his own artistic personality
in that of his intimate friend and fellow-pupil in
the studio of Cosimo Rosselli, Fra Bartolommeo.
So thoroughly was Mariotto under the influence of
his talented friend that many of his pictures can
hardly be distinguished from those of the other.
It is even said that Bartolommeo designed tihe
Visitation, a tradition tihat may easily have been
founded on fact. The two men were almost of an
age, Bartolommeo being the younger by only about
a year.
In one respect, however, the two inseparable
friends were of tendencies distinctly opposite. Bar-
tolommeo was susceptible to deep and lasting relig-
ious impressions, holding the monks in -high esteem,
while Mariotto harboured the most violent antip-
athy toward the members of all religious Orders.
It was in the year 1499 that Bartolommeo began
a fresco of the Last Judgment in the mortuary
chapel of the hospital of Santa Maria Nuova. This
fresco has been transported to the Uffizi, where it
is now preserved under Number 71. It was while
xnmsi Gallet^: Truscan Scbool 231
Baftolommeo was engaged Upon this work that the
shock of the death of Savonarola brought about
his final decision to enter the monastery of San
Marco. He left the work unfinished, and it was
later completed by Albertinelli. It is now in bad
condition, but interesting on account of its histor-
ical associations. Albertinelli's part in this work
was almost 'his last effort in painting before he
determined to abandon art. Driven almost insane
by the loss of his comrade, he felt that he no longer
had any heart for his work and could no longer
bear the constant and annoying criticism of his
fellow-painters. Apparently, the life of the student
in those days was much the same as it is to-day.
The adjective most frequently employed by one
painter when commenting upon another's work was
the substantial equivalent of the one most in vogue
in the modern atelier, — " rotten." Added to this
was the peppery and picturesque phraseology of
the Renaissance. It was too much for the lonely
Mariotto. He closed his studio and opened a wine-
shop near the Ponte Vecchio, professing to enjoy
the daily praises that his good wine received much
more than the daily carping criticism of his paint-
ing dealt out by his fellow craftsmen. A little later,
emboldened by his success in his new role of host,
Mariotto moved his shop into the more commodious
quarters of the old house of the Aligiiieri, the re-
232 Ube art of tbe TOfOsi iPalace
puted birthplace of Dante, near itHe Badia. But
soon the degradation of his new calling began to
have its effect, and presently Mariotto closed his
tavern in turn, and re-opened his studio, from that
time on producing some of his best work. The
Visitation belongs to this period.
The subject of this picture is one of the most
important in the earlier history of the Madonna.
It is recorded in the first chapter of Luke, that
■wlien the Archangel appeared to Mary, in the An-
nunciation, she was told by him that her cousin
Elizabeth would shortly give birth to a child in her
old age. And when the angel had departed,- " Mary
arose in those days, and went into the hill country
with haste, into a city of Judah; and entered into
the house of Zacharias and saluted Elizabeth."
The distance thus travelled by Mary from Nazareth
to Hebron, was about fifty miles, and in pictures
of the Visitation, she is usually shown plainly and
heavily dressed for her long journey. Elizabeth
usually receives her visitor in the porch of the house
of Zacharias. The two women exchanged pious
and prophetic salutations, and then Mary's fervent
spirit broke forth in those wonderful words of the
Magnificat. In the full depth of its meaning, this
scene is one of the most significant in the whole
story of the Madonna.
For some time after entering San Marco, Fra
"GltHsi (Bailers: Tuscan Scbool 233
Bartolommeo absolutely refused to paint a stroke,
so strong was his renunciation of things worldly.
It was only when he was clearly shown that Savon-
orola, in his preaching and writing, denounced only
the licentiousness of the art of his day, and really
directly encouraged the specific development of a
truly pure and religious art, in architecture, sculp-
ture, and painting, that Fra Bartolommeo again
consented to take up his brushes and colours. His
Holy Family with Saints, Number 1265, belongs
to this later period, having been started in 15 10,
at the commission of the City of Florence, to dec-
orate the Council Hall in the Palazzo Vecchio. It
is worthy of note that this commission was given
by Piero Soderini, the same pretentious patron and
critic of art • who figured in the amusing incident
of the nose of Michelangelo's David. Work on
the great composition proceeded slowly, extending
over a period of seven years, and when Fra Bar-
tolommeo died, only the monochrome underpaint-
ing, in bistre, was completed. In its general char-
acter, the work verges on the decadence of painting.
Its precise bilateral symmetry, as well as its com-
plete conventionality in grouping and general ar-
rangement, mark this picture as a composition
mutely expressive of the sad artistic stagnation suf-
fered by the great painter during the later years
of his life of monastic routine. That which to
234 Zbc art of tbe mfRsi IPalacc
Fra Angelico was a heavenly inspiration was to
Fra Bartolommeo but the execution of a purposed
plan of life, the fulfilment of a vow. This picture
presents, as its central element, a formal group
consisting of Saint Anne, the Virgin and Child,
and the young Saint John the Baptist. Flanking
the throne are the important Florentine saints,
Giovanni Gualberto and Reparata, with Barnabas
and Zenobio kneeling in the foreground. The full
face, among the figures at the extreme left, is said
to be a portrait of the artist.
But Fra Bartolommeo's influence on the art of
his time was by no means negligible, and many an-
other painter beside Albertinelli came within the
direct range of its inspiration. Among sudi we
number Francesco Granaoci, a pupil of Ghirlandajo,
■who owed almosS as much to the influence of Fra
Bartolommeo as lie 3id to that of 'his master. Gra-
naoci's picture of the Virgin giving her Girdle to
Saint Thomas, Number 1280, is one of his best
and most representative works. It will be recalled
that Granacci was the painter of those decorative
panels executed for the Borgherini nuptial chamber
that were so ineffectually coveted by the agent of *
the King of France. Granacci was two years
younger than Fra Bartolommeo, although he sur-
vived the latter by twenty-six years. The >vork of
which we speak depicts an important incident in
mmst Oalleru: XEuscan Scbool 235
the legendary life of the Virgin, although it is one
that is somewhat infrequently met with. Accord-
ing to the ancient legend, it was revealed to the
Virgin that upon her death her soul should be
taken immediately to heaven, but her body should
rest in ithe tomb for three days, at the end of which
time the soul should rejoin the body and the glori-
fied Madonna should ascend to heaven to assume
her proper place beside her Son and Lord. And so
it happened. Just before the death of the Virgin,
the apostles were imiraculously transported, from
the various places where they were preaching, to
Mount Zion, where the Virgin lodged in the home
of John. During the night that followed their
re-assembling, the Virgin's soul was taken by the
Saviour to be crowned with him in heaven, and the
body was prepared for burial and laid in a tomb
in the Valley of Gethsemane, guarded by the Arch-
angel Michael. Upon the third day, the apostles
and certain others being assembled around the
closed tomb, the soul of the Virgin was returned
to her body and she rose from the tomb, radiant
and glorified. Before the dazzled sight of the won-
dering apostles the Madonna was swept up to
heaven in a burst of glory and celestial music. But
the apostle Thomas was late in arriving at the tomb
that day, and when 'he reached the spot he saw the
awe-struck group of his fellows and heard their
236 Zbc art ot tbe xatilst palace
wonderful story. As 'he had before doubted the
Resurrection of Christ, so now he expressed his
doubts of the verity of this latter manifestation of
the power of the Lord and demanded that the tomb
should be opened. When this was done, it was
found to be filled with fresh and fragrant roses
and lilies. Then, turning his own wondering eyes
toward heaven, he saw the bodily form of the Vir-
gin in a great glory of light, looking down upon
him as she was borne upwards. In order to confirm
the faith of this doubting though sincere apostle,
the Virgin loosened her girdle, as she rose, and
dropped it into the arms of Thomas. After many
vicissitudes the Sacred Girdle was eventually
brought, about the beginning of the twelfth cen-
tury, from Jerusalem to Prato near Florence, where
it is still preserved in a special reliquary chapel of
the cathedral. Granacci's picture is well composed
land contains some fine figures, the best of which
are that of the Archangel Michael, in full armour,
who kneels beside the tomb as its guardian, and
that of Saint Thomas.
Among the painters of the early sixteenth cen-
tury there was many a wit, many a practical joker
or blagueur, as sutfh a fellow is called in the slang
of the modern French studio. By far the chief of
these rollicking wags was the talented Sienese,
Giovanni Antonio Bazzi, better known by the op-
XUffiSi ©allerg: Unscan Scbool 237
probrious although self-ohosen nickname of II So-
doma. He was born in 1477.
Sodoma was an apt pupil of Leonardo da Vinci
at Milan and later came under the all-embracing
influence of Raphael at Florence. The greater part
of his active life, however, was spent in Siena,
where his own influence on art was most strongly-
felt and where he was frequently roundly scored
by his outraged neighbours. Always gay and light-
hearted, ready to take a thrust and to return it with
interest, without an iota of respect or reverence for
the dignity of others, and himself ever willing to
appear much worse than he really was, the talented
painter lived his life as it pleased him to live it,
and worked when and how it pleased him to work,
caring little for perfection in his art and yet actu-
ally unable to turn out a really bad piece of work.
For the most part, Sodoma's greatest works are in
the realm of fresco, still preserved in various places,
but the Ufiizi Gallery boasts the possession of his
(niasterpiece, a gonfalon, or procesisional banner.
Number 1279. This work was executed in 1525
for the Company of Saint Sebastian in Camollia
and presents on one side a figure of the Patron
Saint of the Company and upon the other the Ma-
donna and Child with Saints and Flagellants. Saint
Sebastian is shown as a nude figure of great beauty,
bound to a tree and pierced with numerous arrows.
238 Ube Hrt of tbc mffist Palace
The sainted martyr was a favourite officer of the
Praetorian Guards under the Roman emperor Dio-
cletian. Although a Christian, Sebastian had not
openly professed his faith, on account of his posi-
tion, but his belief was eventually discovered
through his impassioned exhortation of two fellow
Christians, Roman soldiers, who were condemned
to death for their faith but were offered the oppor-
tunity to recant and live. Sebastian's appeal to
their wavering faith strengthened them and enabled
them to go boldly to their death, but it brought
denunciation for Sebastian himself. The emperor,
enraged at the stand taken by his former favourite,
condemned him to be shot to death with arrows.
He was bound to a stake and met the dreadful sen-
tence with great fortitude, the archers leaving him
for dead. But, miraculously, Sebastian was not
injured in any vital part, and he was cared for by
a pious widow and subsequently recovered. Upon
his recovery, 'he boldly and openly denounced the
wickedness of the emperor, and for his temerity
was clubbed to death. In Sodoma's great picture,
the splendid figure of the arrow-pierced martyr
raises his eyes to heaven whence comes an angel
bearing a crown of glory. This is perhaps the best
known and most popular picture representing this
subject. From very ancient times the arrow has
been the symbol of pestilence. Hence, by associa-
SODOMA. — SAINT SEBASTIAN
Xflffisi Oallcrs: truscan Scbool 239
tion, Saint Sebastian 'has always been regarded as
the patron and protector whose aid is to be invoked
against pestilence and plague. It is needless to say
that the unspeakable filth that was strikingly char-
acteristic of the mediaeval city was responsible for
the conditions that placed the saint upon the pin-
nacle of his popularity. There was hardly a medi-
aeval town of any importance that was not repeat-
edly ravaged by tihe plague. Chapels and churches
dedicated to Saint Sebastian are numberless. This
particular banner was carried through the streets
of Siena upon the occasion of such necessary invo-
cation. It was highly prized by the Company for
which it was painted. The contract price wais
twenty ducats, but the Company was so much
pleased with the work that it actually paid the
artist ten ducats more than the price agreed upon.
Vasari quotes a report that the Company once
received an ofifer of three hundred gold crowns for
the work, but refused to part with it.
Two interesting companion-pieces presenting dis-
tinctly Florentine subjects, are found under Num-
bers 1275 and 1277, by Ridolfo Ghirlandajo, son
of Domenico Ghirlandajo and pupil of Granacci.
The subjects are drawn from the life of Saint Ze-
nobio, or as the Florentines call him, San Zanobi,
the great early bishop of Florence. They are the
masterpieces of the artist, and show the combined
240 Zbc art of tbe "ClCRsi palace
influeaces of Leonardo and Raphael. Both pic-
tures were painted for the Brotherhood of San
Zanobi. In Number 1275, San Zanobi restores to
life the child of a French lady, w^ho had been- killed
by a fall from a window in the " Palace of the
Ugly Faces " in the Borgo degli Albizzi. The
action takes place in the crowded street and the
picture is full of life and vigour. In Number 1277
is shown a remarkable miracle that took place near
the Baptistry of Florence. According to the old
tradition, the body of San Zanobi was being car-
ried in procession from its first resting-place in
San Lorenzo to the Duomo, wlhen the procession
passed a dead elm tree that stood just north of the
Baptistry. By accident, the reliquary of the saint
touched the tree, and immediately it burst into leaf
and blossom, although it was in the month of Jan-
uary. An old granite column now marks the spot
where this miracle is said to have taken place.
It is probable 'that among all the later creations
following the type of the early conventional altar-
pieces, the rank of highest in development would
be given to Andrea del Sarto's Madonna and Child
with Saints, Number 11 12, popularly known as the
Madonna of the Harpies. It is the undoubted mas-
terpiece of the " faultless painter," and is accorded
a place aimong the greatest pictures in the world.
Alike in graceful composition, in soft, glowing, and
fUt&ii ©alletB: iCuscan Scbool 241
exquisitely blended colour, in restful dignity, and
in religious sentiment, it is a work of the 'highest
merit, well deserving of its steady and increasing
popularity. It is a Franciscan picture, painted for
one of tihe brothers of Santa Croce, who was In-
tendent of the local Franciscan Convent in the Via
Pentolini. In the work, the combined influences of
Bartolommeo, Leonardo and Correggio are all felt,
— the formal composition of Bartolommeo, the
rich colour of Correggio and the witchery of Leo-
nardo. It was painted in 15 17, four years after
the painter's marriage to Lucrezia del Fede, who
was the model for the face and figure of the Ma-
donna. This figure is thus one of the most obarm-
ing portraits of his haughty and faithless wife that
Andrea has given us. The painter's own portrait
appears in the splendid figure of Saint John at the
right. The figure at the left is Saint Francis. The
Madonna is elevated upon a pedestal, on the corners
of which are carved two small figures of harpies,
from which the picture takes its name. The two
little angels that stand beside the pedestal are most
delightful, and reminiscent of Bartolommeo. The
playfulness of the Child strikes a Leonardesque
note. In mass and detail, in figure and line and
soft flow of drapery, in rich colourful beauty and
intellectual satisfaction, this picture is well nigh all
that could be desired of it. The wonderful impres-
343 Ube Htt ot tbc mmn palace
sion created by it lingers long in the mind o^ even
the most casual visitor to the Uffizi Gallery. It is
the undoubted pearl of the rich collection. So
highly was this picture valued by the Grand Duke
Ferdinand de' Medici, who purchased it for the
collection, that he had a copy made of It to be hung
in the Uffizi, while the original was placed in the
residential palace of the Pitti. It was returned to
the Uffizi by Pietro Leopoldo.
An intimate acquaintance with this magnificent
work will afford ample comprehension of the deep
meaning of a famous comment made by Michel-
angelo to Raphael when the two great masters were
at work together in Rome. Robert Browning's
paraphrase completely conveys the spirit of the re-
mark:
" Friend, there's a certain sorry little scrub
Goes up and down our Florence, none cares how,
Who, were he set to plan and execute
As you are, pricked on by your popes and kings,
Would bring the sweat into that brow of yours ! "
Although of very humble parentage, among the
greatest artists of Florence and Rome Andrea ranks
immediately next to Leonardo, Michelangelo and
Raphael. He was without a family surname, being
properly known by one of those common and
lengthy genitive compounds, — Andrea d'Agnoio
di Francesco di Luca. Agnolo, the father, was a
mt&ii ©allcrs: Xluscan Scbool 243
tailor; Francesco, the grandfather, was a linen-
weaver; and Luca, the great-grandfather, was a
farm-labourer. The familiar nickname, Andrea del
Sarto, is equivalent to " the tailor's Andrew."
When only seven years of age, having displayed
unusual talent, Andrea was apprenticed to a gold-
smith. Soon, however, the lad attracted the atten-
tion of Giovanni Barile, a rather mediocre Flor-
entine artist, who discernedly turned the young
apprentice's efforts into the field of painting. Very
shortly Andrea so astonisihed his friends by his
marked artistic accomplishment that he was placed
under the eccentric Piero di Cosimo, at the time
one of the best masters in Florence. It was while
he was studying under Piero that Andrea met and
formed a close intimacy with Franciabigio, a pupil
of Mariotto Albertinelli. The two at once became
fast friends, taking lodgings together and in com-
pany executing many works for local patrons. It
was not long before such due credit came to the
young artists that they were encouraged to take
better rooms in a good quarter of the city, near the
Annunziata. That was the beginning of the greater
fame of Andrea, and thenceforward commissions
of importance came easily to him.
While Andrea well deserved the name of " the
faultless painter," bestowed upon him by his ad-
mirers, he was personally modest and unassuming,
244 "^bc Hrt of tbc TUfflst IPalace
never asking for his work more than a very mod-
erate price, insomuch that frequent advantage was
taken of this trait by his patrons. His subsequent
■marriage with Lucrezia di Baccio del Fede, the
handsome and haughty widow of a cap-maker, did
not improve matters greatly for the painter, so that
he never really received the full reward that his
genius and industry deserved. Then too, at the
time, Raphael and Michdangelo held the centre of
the artistic stage in Florence and Rome, and Leo-
nardo in Milan. Andrea was born somewhat out
of time, and his natural disinclination to push him-
self forward prevented him from achieving the
great recognition and due fame that his work even-
tually brought to his name after his death. Brown-
ing puts into his mouth a pathetic expression of
Andrea's realization of his own genius and its ham-
pered accomplishment :
"What would one have?
In heaven, perhaps, new chances, one more chance —
Four great walls in the New Jerusalem,
Meted on each side by the angel's reed.
For Leonard, Rafael, Agnolo, and me
To cover — the three first without a wife.
While I have mine! So — still they overcome
Because there's still Lucrezia, — as I choose."
Number 280 is an interesting Portrait of Del
Sarto, painted by himself, when nearing the end
XIlffi3i ©allerg: ICuscan Scbool 245
of his life. He died in 1531 at the age of forty-
five. According to the story, Andrea was one day
working upon the portrait of a young man, prob-
ably that which hangs near by, Number 1 169, called
a portrait of a Clerk of Vallombrosa. When the
work was finished, the painter called his wife and
desired her to sit for him so that he might paint
her portrait with the colours remaining from the
other work. But Lucrezia was not in the mood to
sit that day, and did not respond to the invitation,
whereupon Andrea took up a tile and placing him-
self before a mirror painted this self-portrait. It
is one of the very best and most interesting presen-
tations of himself that Andrea ever executed.
Number 93 is a Noli me Tangere by Andrea, an
early work, full of religious sentiment and feeling,
painted for the Augustinian Church of San Gallo.
The figure of the Magdalen is again that of Lu-
crezia. While by no means as great as his later
works, this picture is very pleasing and satisfactory.
Mudi the same comment may be made upon Num-
ber 1254, a processional banner painted by Andrea
for the Brotherhood of Saint James. It depicts the
saint accompanied by two children. The figures
are all typical and good.
Jacopo Pontormo, pupil of Leonardo, Piero di
Cbsimo and Albertinelli, and working under the
influences of Andrea del Sarto and Michelangelo,
246 "Cbe art of tbe JSHtR^i ipalacc
is here represented by an interesting Marriage
Plate, Number 1198, on which is charmingly
painted the Birth of John the Baptist. It was the
fashion of the time for guests to bring their gifts
to the marriage feast upon such large plates as this.
An eminent pupil of Pontormo, Angelo Bron-
zino, well and favourably known in his day as a
popular portrait painter, contributes a number of
good and characteristic works to which we must
give passing note. Several of them are charming
portraits of the children of the Grand Duke Cos-
imo I. Number 1272 is Ferdinando I, the successor
of Cosimo I, as a boy. Number 1155, one of the
best, is the merry little Garcia as a child. Number
1 1 64 is the child Maria, subsequently the aunt of
the Maria de' Medici who married Henry IV of
France. Number 1273 is Maria as a young girl,
a very fine work. Number 1266, one of the best
portraits ever painted by Bronzino, is called a Por-
trait of a Sculptor. It is supposed to be Santi Al-
berighi, although no definite identification has as
yet been made.
Number 1271, a large altar-piece by Bronzino,
depicts the Descent of Christ into Limbo, to lib-
erate the souls of the blessed therein detained. It
was painted in 1552, under the influence of Michel-
angelo, for the Zanchini chapel in Santa Croce.
The great composition contains many nude figures,
XUfHsi Gallery: XEuscan Scbool 247
excellently painted, being portraits of notable men
and women of the time. It remained in its place
in the ohapel until it offended the sense of decency
of the early nineteenth century, when it was re-
moved and presented to the Gallery.
Number 1269 is Giorgio Vasari's excellent por-
trait of the greatest art patron of the Renaissance,
Lorenzo il Magnifico. It was under the liberal rule
of this talented member of the great Medici family
that the Florentine Republic attained the greatest
importance, and the city became the greatest centre
of art and intellect and fashion in Italy.
CHAPTER XVII
THE UFFIZl gallery: THE TRIBUNA
The octagonal room known as the Tribuna was
originally constructed to accommodate, the Grand
Ducal collection of gems and precious stones. It
was designed by Buontalenti and decorated in
sumptuous style, the ceiling being inlaid with
motherof-pearl. Later, when the collection of
paintings was found to have outgrown the accom-
modation assigned to it, the Tribuna was appro-
priated to the artistic gems of the Gallery. Here
were brought together those works of sculpture and
painting that were then regarded as the finest in
the collection. The artistic taste o£ that day seems
not to have been exempt from_ a certain necessity
for modern apology. When Bayard Taylor visited
the Ufifizi Gallery as late as 1845, *^s o^^y pictures
in the entire collection that he thought it worth
while to mention in his " Views Afoot " were in
the Tribuna, and they numbered not more than six,
— the Venuses by Titian; the young Saint John
and the Fornarina, bol4i of which were then attrib-
uted directly to Raphael and admired accordingly;
248
w
1-1
W
a
H
o
<
W
S
w
K
H
mtnst (Sailers: TEbe Urtbuna 249
Guercino's Sleeping Endymion, and Samian Sibyl,
the latter since removed to the Room of Baroccio.
Among the entire half-dozen " gems " so men-
tioned, the only works of really unusual merit are
the Titians. So much for the artistic sensibility of
one of America's foremost literary men in the mid-
dle of the nineteenth century, and more especially,
for the general artistic taste of his time. In com>
mon with Byron, Taylor was more susceptible to
classic impressions. Both men regarded the Venus
de' Medici as the finest creation in the Uffizi.
At present, we must pass by the sailpture, re-
serving that for a separate inclusive chapter, and
devote our attention to such of the more important
paintings as still find place in the Tribuna.
The earliest painting in this room is Perugino's
Portrait of Francesco delle Opere, Number 287,
painted in 1491. The sitter was a well-known
Florentine citizen. The work was formerly attrib-
uted to the younger Francia and later, because of
an almost illegible inscription found on the back of
the panel, ascribed to Perugino and identified as
a portrait of the artist. Subsequently, a more
careful deciphering of the inscription established
tlie complete identity of the work. It is a superb
production, in excellent condition, and ranks as one
of the most masterful works of its painter. It is
also one of his earliest portraits in oil. During the
2SO Zbt art of tbe XELffisi Palace
time of its identification as a self-por<trait of the
master, it was hung in one of the rooms devoted
to the Portraits of the Painters, witih which we shall
deal at another place. Perugino's Madonna En-
throned, Number 1122, is a good and typical ex-
ample of the master's simpler religious composi-
tions, the Madonna being characteristically drowsy
and bow-legged! She is not ungraceful, however,
and her face is not lacking in sweetness. At the
sides of the throne stand Saint John and Saint
Sebastian, both good figures, symmetrically posed.
A separate replica of the latter exists in the Louvre.
This representation of the saint and that by Sodoma
are among the best in Renaissance art. The picture
was painted in 1493, for the Church of San Domen-
ico at Fiesole, as a votive offering for deliverance
from the plague. The feeling of the picture, in its
clarity and piety, is entirely Umbrian. In this com-
position, and in the portrait of Delle Opere, it is
interesting to note the persistence with which Peru-
gino introduced his slender, light-foliaged trees
into the background. He used them as a device
to assist in the production of the effect of atmos-
phere.
Fra Bartolommeo's rather heavy figures of the
Prophets Job and Isaiah, Numbers 1130 and 1126,
were painted in 1516 for the Church of the An-
nunziata, and belonged to a pretentious altar-piece,
TOfHsi (Bailers: Ube Urtbuna 251
the central part of which is now in the Pitti Col-
lection. They were among those pictures taken by
Napoleon to Paris in 1799.
For many years, the so-called Madonna del
Pozzo, or Madonna of the Well, Number 1125, was
attributed to Raphael and its mediocrities were con-
doned. The present attribution is to Franciabigio,
pupil of Albertinelli and Piero di Cosirao. The
distinct influence of Andrea del Sarto, however, is
noticeable in the work. While the picture is not
without a certain human charm, it can hardly be
classed among works of more than ordinary value.
The Child playfully clasps the Virgin's neck, turn-
ing to look at the infant John who advances and
places in the Virgin's outstretched hand a little
scroll bearing the inscription " Behold the Lamb
of God." The picture takes its name from the
distant well, whence certain figures are drawing
water. The atmospheric perspective is good.
Number 1120, attributed with some question to
Raphael, is a Portrait of an Unknown Lady, of
much character and excellence, beautifully painted.
It has been variously called The Mother of Raphael,
and Maddalena Strozzi, wife of Angelo Doni, but
these identifications both are without substantial
authority, It is supposed to have been painted
when Raphael was about twenty years of age.
There is a strong- resemblance, technically, between
252 Ube Hrt ot tbe Tflfflsi IPalace
this work and the Donna Gravida of Raphael in
the Pitti Collection.
The attribution of Number 1129, Raphael's Ma-
donna del Carddlino, Madonna of the Goldfinch, is
unquestioned. It is one of the finest works of
the great master's Florentine period, still showing
something of the influence of Perugino in its simple
beauty, and with a distinctly Peruginesque back-
ground. The composition is close and well artic-
ulated, and the colouring rich and beautiful. The
sweet-faced Virgin sits in an airy landscape. Be-
fore her stands the nude Child, placing one of His
little feet upon His Mother's ample one. This
charming contrast is just such a one as has made
many a mother thrill with delight. Leaning
slightly backward between the Virgin's knees, the
Child turns His serious gaze toward the equally
childish and eager John, who has brought a bright-
plumaged bird to show. His curly head marks him
as the older of the two. The Child Jesus reaches
out a chubby hand to stroke the soft head of the
bird. The Mother gazes tenderly down at the
charming pair. This picture was painted for the
love of a friend, a certain Lorenzo Nasi, for whom
Raphael held high regard. When Nasi was mar-
ried, in 1506, the picture was executed as a wed-
ding-gift, and for more than forty years it was
carefully preserved in his home, which was situ-
RAPHAEL. — THE MADONNA OF THE GOLDFINCH
nra3f Oallets: Zbe XTriBuna 253
ated on the south side of the Arno, under the hill
of San Giorgio. In the year 1547, a disastrous
landslip occurred there, ruining several palaces,
and among them that of Nasi. When the debris
was cleared away, the valued picture, which was
on a wooden panel, was found to be split into sev-
eral pieces and otherwise badly injured. But it
was put together again and carefully restored by
the son of Lorenzo, who was a great lover of art
and a painter of some ability. Evidences of the
damage suffered are still easily discernible. This
is one of the loveliest paintings in the Uffizi.
The Portrait of the great Pope Julius II, under
whom Raphael laboured in Rome, is Number 1131.
There are several replicas of this picture, on all of
which Raphael did more or less of the finer work,
although much of the less important painting was
undoubtedly done by his assistants. One of these
replicas, the better one, is in the National Gallery
in London and another is in the Pitti Collection.
The original, in Vasari's time, hung in the Church
of Santa Maria del Popolo in Rome. There is
much deep appreciation of character shown in this
life-like presentment of the great pontiff. Strength
and weariness, impetuosity and craft, temper and
control, all have left their marks on the wonderful
face. The textures, both of flesh and fabric, are
marvellously rendered.
254 "Cbe Hrt of tbc mmsi IPalacc
If Raphael painted the Youthful Saint John,
Number 1127, then it was less carefully done than
was usual with the master, and it was the only-
picture ever painted by him on canvas. All of his
other easel pictures are on wood. The original
sketch for this picture, in red pencil, is in the col-
lection of drawings in the Uffizi, and would seem
to present evidence that the design was' by the
master, but that the painting was done by a pupil,
possibly Giulio Romano. The original painting,
by Raphael, made for Cardinal Colonna, is lost.
It was highly prized by its owner, but was pre-
sented by him in gratitude to the physician who
cured him of a serious malady. Its later where-
abouts cannot be traced. There is evidence, how-
ever, llhat the original design was used for the pro-
duction of a number of copies, most of which were
undoubtedly school work. One by Sebastiano del
Piombo is now in the Louvre. Sebastiano's style
may be studied in the typical portrait of an un-
known man. Number 3458, called L'Uomo Am-
malato, the Sick Man. It was executed in
1 5 14, in a manner quite in keeping with its sub-
ject.
To Sebastiano, also, is now attributed Number
1 123, the Portrait of a Lady. The original attri-
bution of this interesting work was to Giorgione,
'but later it was thought to resemble a portrait of
mffisi ©allerg: Ube UriDuna ass
Raphael's supposed mistress, the baker's daughter.
La Fornarina, and it was so entitled and ascribed
to Raphael. The subject is a womian of Roman
features, garlanded with leaves and wearing a vel-
vet bodice. Over her shoulder is thrown a cloak
lined with panther skin. It is a well-executed work,
with fine textures. Other wandering proposed
identifications of this unknown lady include the
names of a certain popular improvisatrice, Beatrice
of Ferrara, as well as that of the celebrated Mar-
chioness Vittoria Colonna. None seem to be based
upon any very satisfactory ground. This picture
was the property of the Medici and was left by
Cosimo I to one of his faithful bodyguards, Matteo
Botti by name. Matteo's grandson, the Marchese
Botti, last of the family, bequeathed all his pos-
sessions in turn to Cosimo II, so the picture found
its way back into the hands of the Medici and was
placed in the Uffizi Collection.
From the active brush of the prolific portrait
painter Bronzino oome two of his finest works,
Numbers 159 and 154. The former is the portrait
of Bartolommeo Panciatichi, and the latter that of
his wife, Lucrezia de' Pucci. They are companion-
pieces, of the same dimensions. Both portraits are
excellent in character and force, that of the man,
with sharp features and piercing eyes and nervous,
bony hands, being especially fine.
2s6 Zbc Hrt of tbe Xlimst palace
Lovers of Midhelangelo's great frescoes in the
Sistine Chapel in the Vatican at Rome will remem-
ber how the many nude figures of the rising dead
in the Last Judgment gave offence to the sensibil-
ities of some of the clerics of the day. Despite this
feeling, however, no one dared to urge any altera-
tion in the work during the fiery master's lifetime,
but, after his death, those whose sense of propriety
had been outraged by the frankly natural treatment
of the figures in question, accomplished their de-
sire, and the ablest of Michelangelo's Florentine
followers was employed to clothe the objectionable
bodies by painting draperies upon them. This art-
ist was Daniele Ricciarelli, of Volterra, whence he
was commonly called Daniele da Volterra. Beside
being a loyal follower of Midhelangelo, he was
earlier a pupil of Sodoma and Baldassare Peruzzi.
While he was a good and able painter, his work
has suffered severely by contrast with that of the
greater artist whose lead he endeavoured to follow.
His native town, Volterra, however, was justly
proud of Daniele. Upon one occasion, after fame
had come to him, he felt the irresistible longing
that seems to come to every such great son of a
small community, and 'he went back to the town of
his birth and early life for a long visit. His friends
and relations still living there made much of him
and he was feted and flattered to his heart's content.
"Clfflist (Ballets: tCbe Uribuna 257
Very probably the adulation even exceeded his
fondest desires and in time became most tiresome,
as such things are apt to become, and he made
preparation to leave the town again to escape the
persecution. But the people would not have him
leave them so unsatisfied, and Daniele was obliged
to yield to their importunate request that he paint
them a picture as a parting memorial gift. The
panel that he executed in response to this demand
is Number 1 107, the Murder of the Innocents. We
know not what thoughts of dire and sinister import
may have found retaliatory expression in the selec-
tion of this subject, but we have no evidence that
any of the townspeople had so much as the slightest
notion that there might have been a humourous
side to its meaning. The picture was universally
regarded as very beautiful and was given a place of
honour in the local cathedral, where it remained
until purchased for the Uffizi by Pietro Leopoldo
in 1782.
Orazio Alfani's Holy Family, Number mo, is
a picture that sihows the combined influence of
Perugino and Raphael. Alfani was born in Peru-
gia about the year 1510, and died in Rome in 1583.
He was a great lover of the works of Perugino and
of the early works of Raphael, both of which he
imitated. In 1573 he was ibonoured by being chosen
the first president of the Perugian Academy. His
2s8 XCbe Hrt of tbe TUfllsi IPalace
works are rare. This example, even, 'has been at-
tributed to Ridolfo Ghirlandajo.
Jusepe de Ribera, the Spanish-Neapolitan painter,
called by the Italians Spagnoletto, has but one pic-
ture in the Uffizi, Number 1104. It is a picture of
Saint Jerome, of minor importance only, but de-
serving of passing mention.
The remaining pictures in the Tribuna represent
schools other than those of central Italy. A good
dozen of them are works of the painters of the
northern part of the peninsula, some being excel-
lent Venetian pictures, although the greater part of
the works of this school are in the Venetian Room
which we shall consider separately. There are also
some six or eig'ht works of the German, Dutch and
Flemish schools.
In the Tribuna there is but one example of the
Bolognese school, but that is the masterpiece of
Francia, the most important painter of the school.
It is the Portrait of Evangelista Scappi, a gentle-
man of Bologna, Number 1124. While full of ex-
cellent character, the work is cold in feeling. The
man is dressed in black and painted against a cool
landscape. The idehtification cannot be missed, for
the gentleman quaintly holds in his hand a scroll
upon which his name is inscribed. The picture has
been considerably retouched.
Number 1121, formerly catalogued as a work
miflsi Gallery: Ube Uribuna 259
by Mantegna, has been variously assigned. The
weight of evidence, however, seems to be with
Morelli, who gives it to Giovanni Francesco Ca-
rotto, a Veronese painter of the late fifteenth and
early sixteenth centuries. It is an interesting Por-
trait of Elisabetta Gonzaga, wife of Guidobaldo
di Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino. She is richly
dressed, in somewhat bad taste, and possesses a
serious althougih highly intellectual face. Bound
upon her forehead by a thin cord is a scorpion,
symbolizing 'her unusual abilities as a logician.
Bernardino Luinij the Lombard colourist, is rep-
resented by a picture of Salome, the Daughter of
Herodias, with the head of John the Baptist, Num-
ber 1135. It is one of his best works, glowing
with that warm and harmonious colour for which
the artist was so famous. Luini was a pupil of
Borgognone, but worked under the influence of
Bramantino and Leonardo da Vinci. So much of
the latter's inspiration appears in this picture that
it was at one time attributed to him.
Two of the most striking pictures in the Tribuna
are Titian's superb companion-pieces, both cata-
logued under the same title. Reclining Venus. The
earlier one. Number 1117, was painted in 1537 for
Francesco Maria I della Rovere, Duke of Urbino.
It represents a nude female figure, reclining upon
a luxurious couch, while in the background attend-
26o Ube Hrt of tbe Xttffist IPalace
ants are selecting garments from a carved chest.
The figure is most beautifully modelled, in line and
proportion delicate and lovely beyond criticism. If
she is a courtesan, as some would maintain, she is
certainly one of the most refined type. The face
bears a striking resemblance to that of Eleonora
Gonzaga, Duohess of Urbino, the wife of Fran-
cesco, as painted in a portrait hanging in the Room
of the Venetian School. Despite much restoration,
the marvellous glow of Titian's flesh painting still
holds one spell-bound before this masterpiece. On
the foot of the couch reposes a little dog, from
w'hich the picture takes its popular name, the Ve-
nere del Cagnolino, the Venus of the Little Dog.
The work is believed to have been inspired by
Giorgione's beautiful Sleeping Venus, now in the
Dresden Gallery, which it closely resembles. Num-
ber 1 1 08, executed in 1547 for the same patron,
presents a bit of a contrast. It is also a reclining
nude, but the form is oast in a much more vulgar
mould. The flesh, however, is equally real. The
face is that of Titian's daughter Lavinia. Over
her shoulder leans a caressing Cupid, whose arrows
and quiver lie at the foot of the couoh. The back-
ground is a. contrast of rich hangings and sombre
landscape. The picture is popularly called the
Venere dell' Amorino, Venus of the Little Cupid.
Both of these pictures came into the collection
w
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imtRSi (Bailer^: XTbe "Clritiuna 261
through the marriage of Vittoria della Rovere with
the Grand Duke Ferdinando II.
Titian's magnificent portrait of the Archbishop
BeccadelH of Bologna, Number 11 16, is well worthy
of attention for its technical perfection. The por-
trait was painted in 1552, when the Archbishop was
in Venice in the capacity of Papal Nuncio. Titian,
at that time, was the most popular portrait painter
in the north of Italy. His direct successor in that
line, in the next generation, was Giovanni Bat-
tista Moroni, pupil of Moretto. Numerous fine
portraits from his brush, almost all technically well
nigh perfect, are numbered among the treasures of
the many of the great collections. The Uffizi has
four. Number 582, a portrait of an Unknown Man,
here, being probably the least attractive of them.
The best are in the Venetian Room.
Paolo Veronese's Holy Family with Saint Cath-
erine, Number 1136, is a fine and characteristic
"work of relatively small dimensions, none too pleas-
ing, perhaps, because Veronese's manner was better
suited to the execution of those vast decorative
compositions that were so much in demand in the
palaces of the Venetian nobility. The original
owners of this picture were Venetians. It would
hardly have been valued very highly elsewhere be-
fore the middle of the seventeenth century. Vero-
nese died in 1588.
262 Ube art ot tbe "dfllsi palace
Antonio Allegri, born in the little town of Cor-
reggio, whence his commonly accepted name, was
one of the uniqtie painters of the Renaissance. He
was born about 1494, living only to the age of
forty, but in that comparatively short life, he ex-
erted an influence upon art in some ways compar-
able to that of Leonardo and Raphael. In one
respect he excelled both of these great masters, for
he was the truest colourist in the whole history of
Italian painting. His knowledge of chiaroscuro
was quite the equal of that of Leonardo and his
S'hadows have never lost their deep transparency.
Correggio's flesh tints are wonderfully luminous
and his passion for painting the superficial beauty
of lovely women and children has given us some
of the most delightful pictures produced by any
artist at any time. He was never a student of
human nature, not caring to probe beneath the
surface, and so we do not find any depth of char-
acter in his work. Instead, we find the expression
of the full joy of life. His women and children
smile and play and are happy, and their smiles are
not the subtle ones of Leonardo's creations, but the
light and care-free ones of those who habitually
look out, not in. In his character as the painter
of the joy of life, Correggio is sometimes called
" The Faun of the Renaissance." Like the faun,
he was interested in the natural manifestations of
intRsi Pallets: XLbt Utibuna ^63
life. His " putti " are the best and jolliest childfeti
known to Italian art. Like the faun, too, he was
of a retiring disposition, caring little for the display
of the court or the luxury with which his noble
patrons in Mantua surrounded him* His name
lives not through his influences on numerous pupils,
but through the genuineness of his work and its
universal appeal to humanity's love of the frankly
beautiful.
Three of the four works belonging to the Uffizi
attributed wholly or partly to Correggio are hung
in the Tribuna, the ear' i est being the so-called Re-
pose in Egypt, Number 1118. It was executed
about 1 5 16, supposedly for a convent in Correg-
gio, and is one of the master's more serious pic-
tures. Nothing of its history is definitely known.
The figures are all graceful and beautifully com-
posed in long sweeping lines, and the colouring is
deep and rich. In the execution of this early work
appears the promise of the master's later greatness.
In Number 1134, a Madonna adoring the Child,
we have a picture more in the master's usual vein.
It was painted about 1519, and was originally the
property of the Duke of Mantua, being later pre-
sented to Cosimo III. This picture has been aptly
described as " a pretty domestic scene masquerad-
ing as a Nativity." While seeming to be a religious
composition, there is in reality very little of relig-
264 TLbc Hrt of tbe xamst palace
ious sentiment or expression in it. The scene is
simply one of every-day occurrence, a pretty mother
charmed by a playful child. But simple as the
story is, it is most beautifully told, in masterful
handling of the masses of light and shade, in beauty
and harmony of colour, and in delicate grace of
execution. Number 1132 is a comparatively poor
picture, showing little of Correggio's own work-
manship, a Head of the Baptist. Neither subject
nor execution are characteristic of the master. It
is undoubtedly a school piece. The attribution is
questionable. Kugler gives it, with some reason,
to Luini.
When the flame of the Renaissance began to
show signs of dying out in the late sixteenth cen-
tury, the three Caracci Brothers in Bologna made
a strong effort to revive the spirit of the greatest
masters in painting. They organized a school and
drew to their studios many young and talented
men. But all their efforts were but as the shadows
of the real art of the High Renaissance. Anni-
bale Caracci, the elder one of the brothers, born
in 1 560, was the best painter in the school, but even
his name is spoken with indulgent toleration by
those whose good fortune it has been to know the
real spirit of the great men. There is one mediocre
example of Annibale's work in the Tribuna, Num-
ber 1 133, a Bacchante. The best pupil of the
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TIlffi3t (Ballerg: Ube trribuna 265
Caracci was Domenico Zampieri, known as Domen-
ichino, who was born in 1581. His favourite sub-
jects were religious, historical and mythological.
His " Communion of Saint Jerome " in the Vatican
Gallery, is popularly rated as one of the great pic-
tures of the world. The Florentine Galleries own
only one example of Domenichino's work in the
Portrait of Cardinal Agucchia, Number 1109, in
the Tribuna, a good work, but also one that is not
a satisfactory representative of Domenichino's art.
Giovanni Francesco Barbiere, a later pupil of the
school of the Caracci, known as Guercino, Little
Squint-eye, is represented by a Sleeping Endymion,
Number 1137, of very minor merit, of which we
have made mention in connection with Bayard Tay-
lor's visit to the Gallery. This decadent picture is
the latest Italian work in the Tribuna. Guercino
was born in 1591 and died in 1666.
In the collection of the Tribuna are two works
by Rubens, the greatest painter in the Italianized
Flemish art. He is not well represented here. The
works are Number 1140, Hercules between Vice
and Virtue, a studio piece; and a more interesting
Portrait iof Isabella Brandt, the artist's first wife.
Number 197, painted in 1625. Neither of these
demands any special comment.
Anthony Van Dyck, the most famous of the
pupils of Rubens, has here a good portrait of Sir
266 Ube act of tbc mmsi palace
John Montfort, of which there is a replica in the
Vienna Gallery. It is Number 1115, and is prob-
ably a composite work, very little beside the draw-
ing of the composition and the painting of the
hands and faces being the personal work of the
master. The remainder of the painting, as was
the case with most of the numerous portraits from
Van Dyck's studio, was probably the work of his
carefully trained pupils and assistants.
Nurriber 1 128, an Equestrian Portrait of Charles
il, long attributed to Van Dyck, is only a school
copy. This is not a portrait of Charles I of Eng-
land, under whom Van Dyck was court painter,
but Charles I of Spain, who was at the same time
the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. He died in
1558, while Van Dyck was not born until 1599.
Lucas Van Leyden was an early sixteenth cen-
tury Fleming, whose work anticipated that of the
Dutch school. His Man of Sorrows, Number
1 143, is a lonely and not very good example of a
school quite different from most of the work in the
Tribuna.
Representing the schools of Germany are Lucas
Cranach and Albrecht Diirer. Cranach's compan-
ion-pieces of Adam and Eve, Nuijibers 1142 and
1 138, are typically stiff and ugly German nudes,
holding little of artistic interest othe^^han that
which is historical merely. Diirer's Adoration of
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TUffisi Gallctij: Ube UrtDuna 267
the Magi, Number 1141, however, is of consider-
ably greater attractiveness and general interest.
This great master's work was well-known in Italy
during the Renaissance, and its strong intellectual
quality made a vital appeal to the great Italians.
Raphael entertained a very frank admiration for
Diirer's works, and kept engravings and wood-cuts
of them about his studio. Occasionally, even, he
boldly copied some especially good bits of Diirer's
compositions into his own paintings. This Adora-
tion of the Magi is Diirer's first easel-painting of
importance. It was painted for Frederick the Wise
for the chapel of his castle at Wittenberg. Later
it came into the possession of the Emperor Ru-
dolph II and was placed in the Imperial Gallery at
Vienna. Toward the close of the eighteenth cen-
tury the picture was given to the Ufifizi in exchange
for one by Fra Bartolommeo. In its general feel-
ing this painting is largely Italian, but the Italian
traditions have been translated into German modes
of expression. In the sacred art of the northern
countries of Europe, the younger king in this scene
is almost always a Moor. Despite its early naivete,
there is much of nobility in this composition and
one finds much pleasure in the study of its beau-
tiful detail at close .range, including the flora and
fauna. The figure of the younger king is especially
good.
268 Cbe art of tbe mtflst palace
While it has been seen that the Tribuna is by
no means reserveid for the finest works in the col-
lection, the pictures there exhibited are still of
much special and relative interest.
CHAPTER XVIII
THE UFFIZI GALLERY : THE ROOM OF THE VENETIAN
SCHOOL
While Venice was one of the greatest and most
important cities in mediaeval Italy, it was also in
many respects strangely provincial. Most of its
power and wealth was due to its location at the
head of the Adriatic Sea, and through the hands
of its merchant princes passed much of the rich
commerce between the Orient and the countries of
central Europe.
While Florence was developing a strongly inde-
pendent art during the fourteenth century, Venice
was contentedly accepting the lifeless formalism of
the art of Byzantium. It was not until the fif-
teenth century was well advanced that the painters
of Venice began to feel the newer movement that
was sweeping all before it south of the Apannines.
About the close of the first quarter of the fif-
teenth century, two strongly individual artists made
their way from Tuscany and Umbria into Venice,
attracted, probably, by the excellent opportunities
there ofifered for distinctive labour. They were
269
270 Ube Hrt of tbe lIlfHst palace
Paolo Uccello and Gentile da Fabriano. The latter
remained to work and teach in Venice for several
years. He found there two local schools of paint-
ing, if such they may be called, working quite inde-
pendently of one another. The earlier one had its
centre in the outlying town of Murano, then a com-
munity of much greater relative importance than
it is to-day. The school comprised several painters
of very minor importance, who were not slow,
however, to avail themselves of the opportunities
offered by the presence of the great Umbrian.
Soon the work of the Muranese school began to
take on a much more advanced character, under
the direction of seveiral members of a family known
as the Vivarini. It is not possible satisfactorily to
study this early Muranese work in the Uffizi, for
the collection of Venetian pictures, in the Room
of the Venetian School, possesses only one fair
example of the period in Bartolommeo Vivarini's
figure of Saint Louis of Toulouse, Number 1568.
In the city of Venice, proper, was found the
most flourishing school led by Jacopo Bellini, whose
flat^faced Madonna and Child, Number 1562, pre-
sents a characteristic example of his work. Au-
thenticated pictures from the brush of Jacopo Bel-
lini are rare. He was active during the second and
third quarters of the fifteenth century. But little
is known gf this pipneer, histpricalljr, sav^ that he
TUma Oaller]?: Denetian Scbool 271
was probably born during the closing years of the
fourteenth century. Some time previous to 1420
he was married, and became the father of a son,
Gentile, and a daughter, Nicolosa. Gentile was evi-
dently named after the Umbrian master, who was
then the intimate friend and teacher of Jacopo.
While the boy became a painter of importance, no
example of his work is found in the Uffizi. The
daughter, however, was the means of bringing an-
other strong influence into the art of Venice, for
she was married in 1433 to the rising young Pad-
uan, Andrea Mantagna, then twenty-two years of
age.
Mantegna figures in Venetian art only as a pow-
erful influence, the strength of which may be esti-
mated by studying onei of his ripe works of which
the Uffizi is fortunately possessed. This composi-
tion is a wonderful triptych. Number 11 11, painted
about 1459 for the castle chapel of the Marquis
Ludovico Gonzaga of Mantua. The central panel
depicts the Adoration of the Magi, the right the
Circumcision, and the left the Ascension. In each
the workmanship is exceedingly delicate and fine,
almost that of a miniature, and full of exquisite
beauty. There is a touch of true Oriental char-
acter noted in the costuming of the train of the
Magi, where each figure has a distinct personality.
The scene of the Circumcision is set in a great
272 tEbe Hrt of tbe xaffisi palace
arcaded hall of distinctly Paduan design, and the
figures are most charmingly painted, with feeling
and realism. The Ascension is a simpler picture,
somewhat less carefully painted, but still very
pleasing. This is one of the important master-
pieces of the Gallery, and must be studied at first
hand to be thoroughly appreciated.
Mantegna's influence was very strongly felt by
Giovanni Bellini, illegitimate son of Jacopo, who
was born about 1427, and was a pupil of his father.
Giovanni was by far the greatest of the Bellini, and
his influence, in turn, was exerted on the whole
range of the Venetian painters of the Renaissance.
The Uffizi possesses only one example of his work.
It is an allegorical picture. Number 631, sometimes
called the Madonna by the Lake, but more properly
an Allegory of the Church. Its scheme is founded
upon a popular French religious poem of the four-
teenth century. Some of the imagery is doubtless
borrowed also from the Song of Solomon. The
Church is represented as a female figure, much
resembling a Madonna, without the Child, en-
throned within a quadrangular enclosure. The
space is paved with fine marble and surrounded
with a simple paling. Beside the throne are the
figures of the two Saints Catherine of Alexandria
and of Siena. In the centre of the enclosure sev-
eral nude children, symbolic of human souls, are
"Glfflji Oallers: IDenetian Scbool 273
plucking the fruit from the potted Tree of Life.
To tha right stand the nude figures of Saint Se-
bastian and the great Adriatic patriarch Saint Job.
Both are " plague saints," symbolic of the uni-
versal protective power of the Church against
physical and spiritual pestilence. The enclosure is
guarded by Saint Paul with his great sword, while
Saint Peter, with his keys, leans over the paling
close by the open gate. Outside is a striking Man-
tegnesque landscape of lake and mountain, in which
may be discerned various figures symbolic of the
Faiths of the World, without the pale of the
Church. This picture is so very different from the
later work of Giovanni that it may be regarded as
occupying somewhat of an anomalous position in
the history of Venetian art. In common with the
later work, however, it is executed in oils. The
pictures by Mantegna and Jacopo Beilini that we
have noted are in tempera. The difference is a
significant one. During the latter half of the fif-
teenth century, the Flemish use of oil was intro-
duced into Italy and the method of handling the
new medium was mastered by Antonello da Mes-
sina, who came to Venice to practise his art. Gio-
vanni Bellini was then in the height of his popu-
larity as dean of the painters of Venice. The new
method of work produced attractive results and
soon the jealous eye of Bellini saw an increasing
274 tcbe Hrt Of tbe mtR^t Palace
number of patrons making their way to the studio
of the newcomer. This was indeed too much!
Ref>resenting himself to be a noble who desired to
have his portrait painted, Bellini went himself to
Antonello's studio. The paintitig was soon begun
and proceeded apace. Antonello worked openly
and without reserve and the sitter watched him
shrewdly. When the portrait was finished, Bellini
had learned his lesson thoroughly and thencefor'
ward he both used and taught the new style. Sub-
sequent pictures from his studio in tempera were
rare, either from the master's own brush or from
those of his pupils and followers.
Victor Carpaccio, who became active during the
latter part of the fifteenth century, was one of the
first painters to successfully combine the influences
of the schools of the Vivarini and the Bellini. His
Finding of the Cross, Number 583 bis, is a fine
fragment that displays his remarkable ability as a
story-teller. It is the only example of Carpaccio's
work in Florence. Other pictures showing the
same combination of influences are the Madonna
by Cima da Conegliano, Number 584 bis, and the
Madonna with Saint Peter, Number 584, form^erly
attributed to Cima, but probably by Pier Francesco
Bissolo.
The name of Giorgio Barbarelli of Castelfranco
is one of the greatest in the history of Italian paint-
lattlsi Oallerg: iDenetian Scbool 27s
ing. Born about 1477 and trained in the studio
of Giovanni Bellini, his short life of thirty-three
years was brim-full of achievement and influence.
He was a fellow-pupil with Titian in the studio of
Bellini, iln the words of a recent sympathetic
critic, he " launched the ship that Titian brought
to port." On account of his big, somewhat clumsy
physique, this master was commonly called Gior-
gione. Big George, and by this nickname he is ordi-
narily known to fame. He has been characterized
aptly as an emancipator, — a rejector of conven-
tionality, — an idylist. All these he was, and more.
An individuality rare indeed, with powers of exe-
cution fully equal to those of conception. Genuine
pictures by Giorgione are not numerous, and the
Uffizi boasts the possession of two companion-
pieces by him, the earliest existing works of the
master, painted when ha was only about seventeen
years of age. Both are scenes from sacred story,
but the groups of figures seem only to serve as the
excuse for the superb backgrounds of beautiful
landscape. Number 630 is the Judgment of Solo-
mon. The figures here are mere marionettes, but
the story is easily read. Number 621 is similar in
■type, but with much better figures. It depicts a
scene from the old Rabbinic legend of the Trial
of the Infant Moses. It is said that when Moses
had reached the age of three years, Pharaoh's coun-
276 Ube Hrt ot tbe mffist tt>alace
sellers became alarmed and jealous of the favour
bestowed upon the child, and they advised that he
be killed. To this advice Pharaoh returned the
objection that the child was too young and too
innocent. The counsellors protested that he was
not so unknowing as he appeared. To settle the
point, two trays were placed before the babe, one
containing live coals and the other a ring set with
a large and brilliant ruby. It was agreed that ii
the child should take the ring, he would be consid-
ered as knowing good from evil and should be
slain. But if he should reach for the fire, his life
would be spared. When" the child saw what was
placed before him, he reached otit at first for the
ring, but the Angel Gabriel, present in human form,
influenced the child to turn his hand aside. He
took up one of the hot coals and put it into his
mouth, burning his tongue so badly that he never
was able to speak plainly. The counsellors never
again made any attempt upon his life.
Number 622, a much later work of Giorgione,
is the so-called Portrait of a Knight of Malta. It
is altogether a superb painting, well characterized
and sensitive, of high refinement and rich effect.
The feeling of brooding melancholy that pervades
the figure is peculiar to Giorgione's creations.
Although born almost at the same time as
Giorgione, the great Tiziano Vecdli outlived him
mfflsi (Bailers: IDenettan Scbool 277
by many years, dying at last in 1576 at the age of
ninety-nine, one of the greatest masters of paint-
ing in the world. Much of Titian's early success
was due to the artistic influence of Giorgione, whose
work Titian copied and studied assiduously. Of
the dozen or more pictures attributed to Titian in
the Ufifizi, many are not at all worthy examples and
we may properly pass them by, confining attention
to those works that have thoroughly established
their claim to a high recognition. One of the earli-
est of these is Number 633, a Madonna and Child
with Saint John and Saint Anthony Abbot. This
is an exquisitely beautiful creation, showing the
influence of Giorgione. The youthful Virgin, radi-
ant and lovely, holds her Child toward the little
Saint John, who hands Him flowers. The venerable
Saint Anthony, leaning on his crutch, to which is
attached his attributional exorcising bell, is one of
the finest old men that Titian ever painted. The
soft loveliness of the whole picture baffles verbal
description.
The ever-popular Flora of Titian, Number 626,
is a more mature work, and one that displays more
of artifice and conscious effect than does the one
just mentioned. The half-length figure of the
scantily and uncertainly draped woman is com-
pletely characteristic as a type of the palace-bred,
voluptuous Venetian woman of Titian's day. All
278 Zbc Hrt ot tbe mfilsi Palace
the textures, of fabric and flesh, despite much re-
painting, are superb and convincing. In the allur-
ing softness of the form there is some suggestion
of the possible truth of the discredited legend that
the model for this picture was the beautiful Vio-
lante, daughter of Palma Vecchio, with whom
Titian was deeply in love, lit was painted when
Titian was about thirty-eight years old. The
popular name of the picture is due to the flo\t-
ers that the lady holds so temptingly in her
hand.
Two of the best portraits ever painted by Titian
came into the Uffizi Collection through the famous
marriage of Vittoria della Rovere, of which we
have made mention. They are the portraits of
Francesco Maria della Rovere, Duke of Urbino,
Number 605, and Eleonora Gonzaga, the Duchess,
his wife, Numbar 599. These portraits were exe-
cuted in Venice, about 1536, while the Duke was
there in command of the Venetian forces in the
war against the Turks. The man is in full armour,
wonderfully painted. The face of the Duchess, in
her portrait, is strikingly like that of the Reclining
Venus in the Triburta, Number 11 17, as is also the
curled-up lap-dog. This facial resemblance is too
strong to be accidental. The Duchess was the
daughter of the most famous woman of her time,
Isabella d'Este. As usual, in Titian's better work.
TITIAN. — FLORA
WRsi Oallers: Venetian Scbool 279
the textures in these portraits are incomparably
fipe.
Another good portrait by Titian is that of Gio-
vanni dedle Bande Nere, son of Giovanni de' Medici
and Cater ina Sforza, Number 614. This young
military leader was one of the interesting members
of the Medici family, descended from Lorenzo, the
younger brother of Cosimo Pater Patriae. The
young man's name, originally, was Ludovioo, but
after the death of his father, his mother changed
his name to that of her husband. With instinctive
precaution against the fatal intrigues so common
among the members of the powerful families of
the time, the mother had the boy taken to a convent
while quite young, and brought up with the nuns,
in girl's clothes. This, however, did not quench
his native military enlJiusiasm, and he was soon
serving as a soldier under Leo X. Rising rapidly,
he became Captain of the Republic and won the
surname of the Invincible. He was killed at the
Battle of Mantua, in 1526, when only twenty-
eight years of age. His followers, out of love for
their leader, never laid aside the mourning bands
that they put on at his death, and hence the young
leader became known to history as Giovanni of the
Black Bands. He was the father of the Grand
Duke Cosimo I.
A very popular portrait is that of Caterina Cor-
28o Zbc Hrt of tbe Himsi Palace
naro, Queen of Cyprus, " the Daughter of the Re-
public," iby Titian, Number 648. Much repainting
has entirely, hidden the master's original work, but
even so the picture still shows its worth. The deft-
ness of the work on this portrait is remarkable.
Says a recent critic, commenting upon the masterly
painting of the many jewels and ornaments in this
picture, — " Art does things now with a twist of
the hand which earlier it elaborated with endless
minuteness." In the background is a spiked wheel,
suggestive of the martyr saint whose name this
regal lady bears. This feature, and the mere linear
suggestion of a nimbus about the head of the figure,
mark it as one of those flattering portraits-in-char-
acter so popular during and after the Renaissance-
Beyond these symbols there is nothing at all sug-
gestive of sanctification about this very worldly
lady. This portrait was painted many years after
her death. The remaining pictures attributed to
Titian are mostly of little interest, the mere passing
mention of them being sufficient. Among them we
note, in the Vestibule to the Room, Number 609,
a school copy of part of the large fresco of the
Battle of Cadore painted for the Hall of the Great
Council in the Ducal Palace in Venice, and des-
troyed by fire. In Number 618 is a work that has
been thought to be a rough sketch for the great
Madonna of the Pesaro Family in the Church of
'Q.ttlSi ©allerg: Denettan Scbool 281
the Frari, Venice. It is probably only an unfin-
ished school copy. Number 1524 is a mediocre
Mater Dolorosa, a very late work of the mas-
ter.
Number 1 540, a Portrait of Sixtus iIV ; Number
590, a Madonna with the Child Baptist; Number
625, a Madonna with Saint Catheirine; and Num-
ber 576, a Portrait of the Sculptor Jacopo Sanso-
vino, are all works of the School of Titian, of
questionable attribution. The Portrait of Sanso-
vino is a work of some merit.
Vincenzo Catena, pupil of Giovanni Bellini, ac-
tive during the early sixteenth century, is repre-
sented in the collection by a completely finished
painting in grisaille. Number 583, a Pieta. This
work in monochrome is unusual and interesting.
It was formerly attributed to Giovanni Bellini him-
self.
Jacopo Palma, the Elder, known as Palma Vec-
chio, was the next great name among the pupils of
Giovanni Bellini. There is but one accredited work
from his brush here, a Judith, Number 619, in bad
condition. Two school pieces show his strong in-
fluence, however. Number 650, a Portrait of a
Geometrician, painted appropriately on slate, and
Number 623, a Santa Conversazione, possibly a
contemporary copy. This latter type of religious
picture was largely developed by Palma Vecchio ; in
282 Ubc Hrt ot tbe msisi IPalace
fact, it may almost ba said to have been invented
by him.
A splendid portrait, showing the influence of
Giorgione, and at one time attributed to him, is
Number 571, a Portrait of a Warrior and his Page.
At present the picture is assigned tb Giovanni Ca-
rotto, although the authorship is still a matter of
dispute. The identification of the Warrior is also
uncertain. Formerly ha was supposed to be the
great general Gattamelata. But whoever the War-
rior may be and whoever the artist, the work is
a most excellant and careful production, full of
character and variety, a genuine personal inter-
pretation. There is marked invention displayed
in the composition, which is far from conventional.
The colouring is warm and pleasing and the con-
dition of the picture excellent.
Two of Palma Vecchio's pupils are hero repre-
sented, both active during the first half of the six-
teenth century, shewing in their work the unmis-
takable influence of Giorgione. Bonifazio Vero-
nese contributes a bold and strongly coloured Last
Supper, Number 628, and Giovanni Cariani a char-
acteristic Holy Family, Number 1569.
Among those artists who combined the methods
of the Schools of Brescia and Venice, the foremost
here represented is Savoldo, also active during the
first half of the sixteenth century, in whose work
TOffi3i ©aliens: IDenetian Scbool 283
may be seen the joint influence of Giovanni Bellini
and Titian. His Transfiguration, Number 645, is
the only picture from his brush in the Uffizi. In
the work of Sebastiano Luciani, commonly called
Del Piombo, because of his honorary office as
keeper of the leaden seal at the Papal Court, there
appears the joint influence of Venice and Rome,
for this artist was the pupil of Giovanni Bellini
but was completely captivated by the titanic
strength of the work of MicheJangelo. iln his
Death of Adonis, Number 592, is shown this some-
what unsatisfactory attempt to mingle Venetian
colour with Roman drawing that later brought
forth such astonishing fruit in the work of Tin-
toretto.
Paris Bordone, the youngest of the more impor-
tant pupils of Titian, has two fine portraits in Num-
bers 577 and 607, both representing unknown men,
full of vigour and personality. Jacopo da Ponte,
of Bassano, pupil of Bonifazio Veronese, gives us
an excellent animal study of unusual character, in
his Hunting Dogs, Number 610. This is the only
authenticated picture by Bassano in the Uffizi, al-
though the interesting group of BaSsano and his
Family, Number 595, has been attributed to him.
It is probably the work of one of his sons, and
suggests the reciprocal influence of the art of the
northern countries.
284 . Ubc Hrt of tbe XHfllsi ©alace
Jiacopo Robusti, called Tintoretto, the Little
Dyer, from his father's occupation, was the most
turbulent of the Venetian painters. At an early
age his artistic ability was recognized and the boy
was put into the studio of Titian. But the young-
ster was undisciplined and intolerant of the studi-
ous methods of Titian's school, although at heart
he thoroughly respected the greatness of the mas-
teir. At any rate, the fiery apprentice did not long
remain with Titian, who complained that the little
fellow would do nothing but daub. When be
started to work indqjendently, Tintoretto placed
on the wall of his studio his motto, expressing the
ideal of art that he held before himself, namely,
" the drawing of Michelangelo and the colouring
of Titian." Examples of Tintoretto's greatest
work cannot be seen outside of Venice. In the
Uffizi, however, beside several interesting school
pieces, there are three good portraits, the best of
which are those of the Admiral Veniero, Number
60 1, seated by an open window overlooking the
sea, and the Sculptor-Architect Sansovino, a fine
head. Number 638.
Giovan Battista Moroni, pupil of Moretto, has
here three fine portraits, all typical of the remark-
able " photographic " execution for which this art-
ist is famous. Numbers 586 and 629 represent un-
identified subjects, the former an unusual full-
fUtRii Galleri?: iDenetfan Scbool 285
length, life-sized work, painted in 1563. Number
642 is a portrait of Giovanantonio Pantera, a
famous writer of the sixteenth century. The book
which he holds is his " Monarchy of Christ,"
printed in 1530.
The real part played by the painting of the six-
teenth century in the palaces of the Venetian no-
bles was a hugely decorative one. For the most
part, the plan of the t3^ical Venetian palaoei in-
cluded a great hall running through the centra of
the building, from front to back, on each of the
=(Upper floors. Such halls were lighted by windows
at the front and back only, the various chambers of
the palace opening out from the halls on each sida.
Very naturally, then, the Renaissance art of Venice
turned its attention to the decoration of the great
blank walls of these halls, between the doors of
the chambers. Great canvases were painted and
affixed to the walls in frames. The subjects ware
mostly religious, in name at least, but the treatment
was brilliantly colourful and partook more of the
nature of a pageant than of a d-avotional scene.
By far the most prolific and popular of the artists
who produced these great decorative works was
Paolo Caliari, batter known as Veronese, prodi-
giously active during the latter half of the six-
teenth century, none of whose best work is to be
found in Florence. There are, however, several
286 Ube art of tbe TUtRsi palace
paintings of his that are worthy of notice. Num-
ber 589 is an early work, of minor importance only,
probably a sketch for a more completely finished
altar-pieoa, representing the Martyrdom of Santa
Giustina, patroness of Padua. Number 603 is a
good portrait of an Unknown Man. Number 579,
a large Annunciation, is possibly a school produc-
tion, but is typical of the decorative character of
the work for which Veronese and his pupils were
so famous. The colonnade in the centre of the
composition gives it the efifect of a triptych. Num-
ber 596, a large work of the school of Veronese,
is completely characteristic. It is a many-figured
and sumptuous composition representing the Ap-
pearance of Esther before Ahasuerus, precisely the
kind of picture that would give rich decorative
colour to the wall of a Venetian palace.
The last prominent artist among the Venetians
to find representation in the Uffizi is Carlo Caliari,
son and pupil of Paolo, known as Carletto. He
was active during a great part of the seventeenth
century, and while he was by no means as great
as his father, his work is an interesting product
of his struggling age of Decadence. Number 604,
one of Carletto's best productions, is a Madonna
and Saints, of some local interest. Jn this picture,
together with the Magdalen and Saint Margarert, is
noted the figure of the good Saint Frediano, the
Tllffllst ©allemg: Wenetfan Scbool 287
Irish-Italian engineer-bishop of Lucca. The rake
that ha carries is symboHc of some great hydraulic
works projected and carried out by him that ren-
dered the plain of Lucca unusually fertile, and pro-
duced the conditions that made the name of the
city famous for its olives throughout the world.
During the sixth century the safety of the town
was repeatedly threatened by inundations from the
river Serchio. According to the legend, the Bishop
Frediano drew a harrow around the city, marking
out a new and circuitous course for the rivar, which
obediently took to its new bed, and thereby much
increased the fertility of the surrounding plain.
Such a dead is well worthy of such a celebration in
art.
CHAPTER XIX
THE UFFIZI gallery: VARIOUS ITALIAN AND
FOREIGN PAINTINGS
Immediately beyond the Tribuna is the small
Room of Various Italian Masters, and beyond this,
in turn, are located rooms devoted to the works
of the German, Flemish, Dutch, and French
Schools, while other works of foreign and domes-
tic schools are found in the rooms opening from
the West Corridor. For the most part, this por-
tion of the collection is of relatively less importance
and may be treated colloctively in a single chapter
without unfair discrimination.
In the Room of Various Italian Masters are sev-
eral good pictures by North Italian painters that
supplement those in the Room of the Venetian
School. Mantegna, the greatest artist in the Pa-
duan School, is represented here by a completely
characteristic picture, in wonderful miniature,
Number 1025, the Madonna of the Quarries. This
little painting is less than a foot high, but so mar-
vellously has it been executed that the central fig-
ure of the Madonna seems colossal. She is charm-
283
MANTEGNA. — THE MADONNA OF THE QUARRIES
xattlsi (Bailers t Jfoteign ipaintings 289
ingly posed, wilh the nude and well-drawn Child
astride her knee, and her drapery clings in those
characteristic little folds that resemble antique
bronze statuary. Mantegna was a close student
and ardent lover of the antique. Behind the Ma-
donna rises a hill, the proportions of which are
responsible for the seeming size of her figure. The
fortress-topped height in the background is another
typical feature of Mantegna's work. The picture
takes its name from the tiny figures of men at one
side, engaged in quarrying large blocks of stone.
It was painted about 1489, while the artist was in
Rome.
Cosimo Tura, of Ferrara, was probably a fellow-
pupil of Squar clone with Mantegna, and shows
much of the influence of the latter. His quaint
figure of San Domenico, Number 1557, is a part
of a large polyptych, the other panels of which are
scattered in Paris, Berlin and Bergamo. This
work is quite typical of the painter's style and is
unusually well preserved. Correggio is also here
further represented by a youthful work, Number
1002, a Madonna and Child with Angels. It is a
charming painting, in excellent condition, executed
when the artist was about twenty-one years of age.
In the singing angels may be noted the promise
of his maturing strength. Parmigianino's Ma-
donna and Saints, Number 1006, is typical of the
290 Zbc Btt Of tbe mffi3i Palace
work of this most noted of Correggio's follow-
ers, but shows how impossible it was for any-
one really to enter the field occupied by Cor-
reggio.
Leonardo da Vinci's Lombard School is repre-
sented by a work of one of his pupils, Boltraffio.
The work is merely a fragment of a larger paint-
ing, a Head of a Youth, Number 3447, but it is
charmingly done, in a spirit that vividly recalls
Leonardo's Virgin of the Rocks. Number 30 bis,
a fine Portrait of a Man, of doubtful attribution,
has been assigned to another follower of Leonardo,
Ambrogio di Predis. The work is worthy of a
better place in the Gallery.
All of the pictures just mentioned are in the
Room of Various Italian Masters. Several other
excellent Italian works are found in the Room of
Baroccio, entered from the West Corridor. There
may be found one of Andrea del Sarto's finest por-
traits, that of his wife, Lucrezia del Fede, Number
188. In its richness, the work is almost Venetian.
In the face is recognized the model for many a
Madonna or saint painted by Andrea in his larger
compositions. This is the only known portrait of
Lucrezia executed as such. She outlived her hus-
band by almost forty years. The painting is a
thorough character study, a bit flattering, perhaps,
but none the less convincing.
"Clttlsi ©allerg : jf oretgn iPainttngs 291
The indefatigable Bronzino has in this room
three fine portraits. Numbers 167, 198, and 172.
The two first mentioned are unidentified Portraits
of Women, but the latter, a superbly characteristic
work, is the Portrait of Eleonora of Toledo, the
famous wife of the Grand Duke Cosimo I. By
her side is a sturdy little fellow, her son Ferdinando,
later the Grand Duke Ferdinando I. Few of Bron-
zino's numerous portraits are superior to this in
character and execution.
The painter for whom this room is named,
Federigo Baroccio of Urbino, was a later sixteenth-
century Eclectic, whose work was chiefly based on
that of Correggio, but shows the influence of
Raphael and Giorgione. His Madonna del Popolo,
Number 169, was painted in 1579, for the Fra-
ternita of Areizo, and represents the Virgin in the
sky, interceding with the Saviour for a blessing
on some pious noblemen below, who are giving
alms to the poor of the town. It is a thoroughly
pleasing picture. Baroccio's masterpiece hangs
near by, Number 1119, a very fine portrait of
Francesco Maria II della Rovere, Duke of Ur-
bino. This important nobleman is represented in
gold-wrought armour with a dash of warm colour
in the broad sash that hangs from his shoulder.
The face is not strongly individual, but then neither
was the painter. The character of an artist usu-
292 Ubc Hrt of tbe mmsi palace
ally has much to do with that of the portraits he
paints.
The list of Eclectic painters represented in this
room also includes Guercino, whose Samian Sibyl,
Number 1114, has already been mentioned; and
the imitator Sassoferrato, whose Mater Dolorosa,
Number 191, has a certain popular vogue.
In the near-by Room of Giovanni da San Gio-
vanni are three canvases by this painter of some
local fame in the early seventeenth century, Gio-
vanni Manozzi of San Giovanni in the Valdarno.
His subjects are unusual and handled with a coarse-
ness of conception, but his manner is almost Vene-
tian. Number 1555, the Marriage Night, is his
masterpiece, not lacking in brilliancy and charm.
Number 1556, Venus Combing the Head of Cupid,
is a characteristic work, as is also Number 137,
the Joke of the Parish Priest Arlotto. This latter
character was a famous fifteenth-century Floren-
tine wit. His grave is in the Church of the Pre-
toni, beneath a slab in the pavement bearing the
unique inscription, " This sepulchre was constructed
by the Parish Priest Arlotto, — for himself and
for all who may desire to enter." In this same
room are a number of works by foreign artists,
among which are worthy of note Sir Peter Lely's
Portrait of Nell Gwynne, Number 135, and a very
fine Portrait of Stanislas Poniatowski, King of
XUfflsi (Bailers t iforetgn patntfuQs 293
Poland, Number 3462, by Angelica Kaufifmann,
pupil of Sir Joshua Reynolds.
Scattered through the rooms of the Foreign
Schools, beside the numerous Dutch and Flemish
works, are several notable examples of German and
French art.
The collection of German works was largely
made in the eighteenth century by Anna Lodovica,
sister of the erudite Grand Duke Gian Gastone
and wife of the Elector Palatine.
Albrecht Diirer is well represented by pictures
additional to those already described. He will be
remembered as the " great link between mediaeval
Germany and the Renaissance." His position in his
country was wall described in his own words:
" God sometimes granteth unto a man to learn and
know how to make a thing the like whereof in his
day no other can contrive." He was as many-
sided as Leonardo and his touch with iltaly lent
new vigour to his work. He travelled south of
the Alps in 1505, in order to escape the plague
then rampant in Nuremberg. The Italians frankly
said that he would have been the greatest of their
artists had he been born in Rome or Florence.
He lacked one faculty with which such a birth
might have endowed him. He was " beauty-blind."
Diirer's Head of Saint Philip, Number 'j'j'j, and
its companion-piece, the Head of Saint James the
394 'n;be Hct of tbe xafHsi palace
Greater, Number 768, are fine works, evidently
fragments of something larger, that strongly re-
mind one of the great panels of the Apostles in
Munich. They were executed in 1516. His Por-^
trait of his Father, Number 766, is most remarlc--
able, paintad in 1490 when the artist was only nine-
teen years of age. The words describing the char-
acter of this old man, given in Albrecht's Family
Chronicle, are worth quoting. " He was a patient
man, mild and peaceable towards every one, and
very thankful to God. He did not need much com-
pany nor worldly enjoyment. He was of very few
words, a God-fearing man." Albrecht Diirer was
the third of eighteen children. His Madonna with
the Pear, Number 91, is a subject that he repro-
duced in several variants. It is dated 1526, and
has suffered much from rehpainting.
Hans Suess of Kulmbach, an early sixteenth-
century German, who worked largely under the
influence of Diirer, was the painter of a number
of similar sized pictures, all of which seem to have
been parts of some large assembly composition,
Those in the collection are: Number 713, Peter
Walking on the Sea; Number 713 bis, the Martyr-
dom of Saint Peter; Number 724, the Martyrdom
of Saint Paul; Number 729, the Liberation of
Saint Peter; Number 740, the Preaching of Saint
Peter; Number 740 bis. Saint Paul taken up to
Tlimsi Oallevs: ^foreign B^atntfngs 295
Heaven ; Number 748, the Capture of Saints Peter
and Paul.
Lucas Cranadh the Elder, well-known Saxon
painter and intimate friend of Martin Luther, is
here represented by four laboriously executed por-
traits, typical works in his quaint Gothic style.
Numbers 838 and 822, painted in 1529, are por-
traits of Luther and of his wife Katharina von
Bora. Luther was born in 1483 and married in
1525. Number 847 is,a double portrait of Luther
and Melancthon painted in 1545, a year before
Luther's death. Number 845 is another . double
portrait, presenting the likenesses of Johannes and
Friedrich, the Electors of Saxony.
Hans Holbein the Younger, of Augsburg, was
one of the greatest of the GerfTian painters and
probably the most cosmopolitan. He was an inti-
mate friend of the great scholar Erasmus, through
whom he obtained introduction to influential mem-
bers of the English nobility. During his latter
years he was court painter in London. It is said
of him that at one time, when engaged in conver-
sation with the famous Sir Thomas More, Holbein
had occasion to refer to a certain nobleman whose
name, for the moment, had slipped his memory.
Taking paper and crayon, he made a rough but
masterly sketch of the man's face from memory,
which was so true and characteristic that Sir
296 ^be Hrt of tbe xiimsi palace
Thomas immediately recognized it and supplied
the fugitive name. Number 765, Holbein's Por-
trait of Sir Richard Southwell, is one of his finest
works, requiring no critic to speak for it. There
is another portrait of the same nobleman in the
Louvre, but it is by no means the equal of this
one. Number 764 is one of Balthasar Denner's
typical portraits, executed with excessively minute
attention to detail that suffers little under a magni-
fying glass. In the eighteenth century, art was
of less consequence than artifice.
There are few worthy works of the French
School in the Uffizi. In early days the transfer
of works of art between Italy and Franca was all
toward France, and in later days this established
habit, although somewhat controlled, was but little
changed. It was only when a French artist came
to Italy to study that his work held much of in-
terest for Italian conoscitori. Claude Lorraine, the
first great French landscape painter, was in reality
as much Roman as French. One of his best works,
executed in Rome in 1672, is a typical misty land-
scape. Number 848. Antoine Watteau is repre-
sented by one of his popular compositions called
a Fete Champetre, Number 671. It has only been
of recent years, comparativeily, that such works as
this have had any place at all in the Italian col-
lections. This one was discovered in i86r.
Xllffll3i Callers: jforciQn painttngs 297
packed away in the store-room of the Pitti Gal-
lery.
The remainder of the paintings of any notable
importance in these various rooms are examples of
the Dutch and Flemish Schools. The collection of
these works is largely due to the taste and activity
of the ambitious and prodigal Grand Duke Cosimo
III, who died in 1723.
A large triptych tabernacle, from the Convent
of Bosco a Frati in the Mugello, Number 744, is
a rare work by Nicholas Froment, dated 1461.
Little is known of this painter, save that he was
the favourite court artist of King Rene of Anjou
at Aix in Provence. His work smacks of the old
French imagination combined with the later Dutch
realism, producing efifects that are at times quite
weird. This is notably true of the central panel
of this triptych, in which is depicted the Raising
of Lazarus. The scene is rendered with entire
fidelity to tradition and convention. In the left
wing Martha sits at the feet of Christ, and in the
right wing the Magdalen anoints the feet of Christ.
This tabernacle hangs in the First Room of the
Flemish and German Schools. In the same room
also hangs an interesting triptych of the Flemish
School of the sixteenth century. Number 731,
formerly attributed to Jan van Eyck. It is worthy
of close comparison with contemporary Italian
298 Zbc art ot tbc isxmsi IPalace
work. The central panel depicts tha Adoration of
the Magi, in which, according to the traditions of
Northern art, the younger King is a Moor.
In the Room of Van der Goes, opening from the
West Corridor, are a number of good and charac-
teristic works, all of which are worthy of mention.
Number 749, brought from Santa Maria Nuova,
is of disputed authorship, but at present assigned
to Petrus Cristus, a Netherlandish artist of the late
fifteenth century who worked under the influence
of the Van Eycks. It is a double portrait of an
unknown man and woman, quaint and not unat-
tractive. An odd and quaint Crucifixion, Number
906, is a Flemish work of the fifteenth, century by
an unknown artist. In it the Magdalen at the foot
of the cross is painted with upturned face in an
attitude almost grotesque.
The active, individual realism of Rogiar van der
Weyden, rival of the Van Eycks and town painter
of Brussels in the middle of the fifteenth century,
is well exaiTiplified in his Deposition, Number 795.
This artist was one of the very few Netherlandish
painters who visited Italy without being influenced
in some distinct way by the art of the great schools
in that country. This composition is pervaded by
the unrelieved feeling of sorrow and sufifering that
is so typical of most of Van der Weyden's works.
The room in which these pictures hang is named
mffist ©alleri?: foreign lC>aintings 299
in hohotif of the fifteenth-century Flemish painter,
Hugo van der Goes, whose masterpiece, Number
1525, is one of the most important foreign paint-
ings in the Uifizi. This is the great Altar-piece of
the Portinari Family that exercised such a very
strong influence upon Florentine art. It was one
of the earliest of the greater works in oil that made
their appearance in Italy when the tempera medium
was the only one in successful Use there for panel
painting. This great triptych came to Florence in
a very personal and significant way. The Medici
Bank of Florence had many important agencies in
the great capitals of Europe and had sent to Brus-
sels, as their resident representative there, a rising
young financier, Tommaso Portinari by name. It
was ha who arranged for the painting of this
altar-piece and who donated it to the Church of
Sant' Egidio (Saint Giles), connected with the
Hospital of Santa Maria Nuova in Florence, where
it was placed over the high altar. Saint Giles is
most popular as a patron in Franca, the Nether-
lands, and Great Britain. An exquisite represen-
tation of the Nativity with the Adoring Shepherds
forms the main panel of the triptych and on the
wings are the figures of the donor and his family
with their patron saints. At the left kneels Tom-
maso Portinari himself, with his two young sons.
Behind them stand gigantic figures of their patron
300 Zbc Hrt of tbc W&3i Palace
name-saints, Thomas and Anthony Abbot. At the
right is the kneeJing figure of the wife, Maddalena,
with her ^daughter Margherita, backed by the Mag-
dalen in gorgeous dress and Saint Margaret with
the dragon at her feet. Saint Margaret was one
of the four great Virgin patronesses who sufifered
torture and death for their faith. During her tor-
ture she was thrown into a dungeon where Satan,
in the form of a terrible dragon, appeared to sub-
due her. Failing to accomplish his putpose he
swallowed her alive, but his body was burst asunder
and the maid stepped forth unharmed. No com-
position could be more thoroughly typical of the
fifteenth-century Northern art than is this great
triptych. Jn many parts it has been considerably
re-painted, but the right wing appears to have re-
mained untouched and is very well preserved.
Hans Memling, of Bruges, another late fifteenth-
century painter, was one of the greatest of Van
der Weyden's pupils. His Madonna Enthroned
with Angels, Number 703, is an exceedingly fine
work, combining the daintiness of a miniature with
marvellous depth and beauty of colour. The fig-
ures of the Madonna and Child are conventionally
stiff and unnatural, but the two kneeling angels are
most charming, especially the one at the left who
playfully holds before the Child an apple, the sym-
bol of the Fall of man that made necessary the
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XDltH3i (Sailers: 3f oreign paintings 301
Redemption. The setting of the scene is rich and
lavish in decoration and the glimpses of distant
landscape through the spaces on either side are
fascinating. In Memling's beautiful portrait of an
Unknown Young M'an, Number 769, the same
delicacy and charming qualities are shown. It is
dated 1485. Four other works by Memling or his
school are in this room. Number 778, catalogued
as a Saint Benedict, is in reality a portrait of a
Benedictine Monk in the guise and character of the
great Founder of the Order. Numbers 780, 801,
801 bis, are striking and attractive portraits of
young men of unknown identification. To Gerard
David, working under the influence of Memling,
are assigned Number 708, an Adoration of the
Magi, and Number 846, a miniature Deposition.
Both works show the excellent and carefully stud-
ied landscapes for which David was famous. To
Quentin Matsys, of Antwerp, is assigned Number
237, a fine double portrait, dated 1502, supposed
to be that of the painter and his wife. Matsys was
a blacksmith who fell in love with the daughter of
an artist. In order to gain the father's consent to
the marriage, the young smith turned from the
hammer to the brush and became one of the most
important painters of his time in Flanders. He
is not well represented in the Uffizi. Number 698,
a Madonna Enthroned with Saints, a fine example
302 Ube art of tbe "dfllst IPalacc
of the work of Hendrik Bles, called Civetta, and
Number ^762, a Mater Dolorosa, of minor merit,
by Joost van Cleef, complete the list of paintings in
the Room of Van der Goes.
Among the many unimportant works in the
Room of the Dutch School only half a dozen will
repay the attention of the avarage student. Pieter
Brueghel the Elder, of Breda, Dutch by birth but
Flemish in manner, is represented by a curious,
fantastic representation of the Way to Calvary,
Number 892, dated 1559, and a small Country
Fete, with tiny uncouth peasant figures. Number
928. The landscape background of the latter is
charming.
The Dutch Genre Painters of the seventeenth
century, more popularly known as the Dutch Little
Masters, are fairly represented in this room. Among
the many small pictures attributed to them, several
may be selected for especial note. Gerard Don's
Pancake Seller, Number 926, is an excellent type of
the work of this popular master. Gabriel Metsu,
pupil of Dou, is well represented by two charming
little genre pictures of higher life, Number 918,
The Lute Player, and Number 972, A Lady and a
Huntsman. Franz von Mieris the Elder is simi-
larly represented by The Charlatan, Number 854,
and The Courtesan, Number 941. The latter was
presented to Cosimo III by the painter. Number
mm3i (Sailers; JToreien paintings 303
890 is a good portrait of Franz von Mieris, by
himself.
Visitors to the great Gallery of the Louvre in
Paris will recall the large Rubens room in which
ara displayed, empanelled upon the walls, a number
of large canvases painted about 1620 for Maria
de' Medici and intended for the decoration of her
palace of the Luxembourg. These great allegorical
compositions, laudatory of the Florentine lady and
her royal husband, Henry IV of France, were all
designed by tha famous Flemish artist, Peter Paul
Rubens, but executed largely by his pupils and as-
sistants, Two of the pictures belonging to an-
extension of the series, although neiver completely
finished, were painted entirely by the master him-
self, and are now in tha Room of Rubens in the
Uffizi Gallery. They were presented by Maria de'
Medici to her family in Florence and for many
years hung in the Pitti Palace. Number 140 rep-
resents Henry IV at the Battle of Ivry, where in
1590 he defeated the army of the Catholic League.
Number 147 represents the Entry of Henry IV
into Paris after the Battle of Ivry. The latter is
considerably the better work of the two, and pre-
sents one of the finest portraits of Henry IV ever
painted. As decorative compositionis these can-
vases are superb, but they suffer somewhat by com-
parison with the great works of much finer feeling
304 Zbc Hrt of tbc xarast Palace
produced by the Italian Schools. Near by hangs
a copy of Velasquaz's Philip iIV of Spain on Horse-
back, Number 210, made by some of the artists of
the School of Rubens. The original is in the Prado
at Madrid. Formerly this work was supposed to
be an authentic replica by the hand of thei great
Spanish master himself, and was so catalogued. It
is a work of considerable merit. Another fine por-
trait by Rubens, with much of life and character
in it, hangs in the Room of Baroccio. It is Num-
ber 180, one of the many interesting canvases upon
which the master painted the well-known face and
figure of his second wife, Helena Fourment.
Next to Rubens, the greatest animal painter of
the seventeenth century was Franz Snyders. In-
deed, in some respects, Rubens even acknowledged
the superiority of Snyders, and the two men estab-
lished a certain occasional reciprocity in their work.
Snyders sometimes painted the animals that ap-
peared in Rubens' pictures, and Rubens, in turn,
sometimes painted human figures for Snyders. The
Boar Hunt, Number 220, is a good example of
Snyders in his kinetic mood.
Gerard van Honthorst, who worked much in
Italy, was a follower of Rembrandt, although not
a direct pupil of the great master. His constant
use of an efifect of brilliant local illumination in
semi-obscurity gained for him among the Italian
xaffist Callers: ifoceign paintings 30s
painters the nickname of Gherardo delle Notti.
He was considerably influemced by Caravaggio and
the Naturalists of the Decadent period in Italian
painting. A thoroughly typical work is his Adora-
tion of the Shepherds, Number 190, recalling both
Rembrandt and Correggio. ilt was painted as an
altar-piece for the Church of San Felicita, its ac-
quisition by the Gallery being comparatively recent.
Here and there, throughout these rooms, are fine
portraits of many of those who had much to do
with the development of the Uffizi Collection.
Quite a number of these are by Justus Sustermans,
who combined in himself, in a modest way, many
of the excellencies of both the Dutch and Flemish
Schools, as well as those of the Italian. He was
a pupil of Pourbus the Younger. His fine por-
trait of the philosopher Galileo, Number 163, in
the Room of Baroccio, was painted for the great
scientist in 1686, and was by him sent as a present
to one of his friends in Paris. It came back to
Florence through purchase by the Grand Duke
Ferdinando I. In the Room of Rubens are three
other excellent portraits by Sustermans which
should be noted. Number 763 is a magnificent one.
It is Claudia de' Medici, daughter of Ferdinando I
and wife of the Archduke Leopold of Austria.
Number 3426 is the Grand Duke Ferdinando II,
and Number 3424 is Vittoria ddla Rovere, his wife.
3o6 Ube Bet of tbe TUm^i IPalace
It will be remembered that it was Under the reign
of this energetic ruler that the South and West
Corridors of the Gallery were constructed and
many important works of art added to the Col-
lection. The Duchess brought to the Gallery upon
her marriage, her priceless inheritance of the art
treasures of the Dukes of Urblno.
Adjoining the Room of Giovanni da San Gio-
vanni, near the end of the West Corridor, is lo-
cated the Cabinet of Pastels and Miniatures. A
detailed treatment of the numerous fine works in
portrait miniature therein contained is somewhat
beyond the scope of the present work, and we must
content Ourselves with the simple mention of those
entitled to rank as most important. Tha numbers
refer to cases containing usually two or three
works. Number 3380 contains miniatures of
Henry IV, Catherine de' Medici, and other mem-
bers of the royal family of France. Number
3343 contains works by Guido Reni, one of them
his own portrait. Number 3355 contains works by
Hans Holbein, together with some excellent works
of the Flemish School. Those in Number 3446
are by Van Dyck. Bronzino contributes to this
unique collection an almost complete set of minia-
tures of the members of the Medici family from
Giovanni di Bicci, father of Cosimo the Elder, to
the Grand Duke Cosimo I and his children. The
RUBENS. —PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST
tUflist ©allers; iforeign patnttnss 307
series is most interesting, all the miniatures being
executed in Bronzino's best style, upon plates of
copper of uniform size. They are twenty-four in
number.
Located at the extreme end of the West Corri-
dor, beyond the Cabinet of Miniatures, are the
Rooms of the Drawings. It is possible only for
us here to suggest the wealth of interest there pre-
served for the technician and the connoisseur. We
may not enter upon that field. To do the collection
any sort of justice would require an entire volume.
Only a few of the most popularly interesting
sketches and designs in the vast collection can be
placed in the exhibition frames, but they are well
worth a discriminating study. We pass to the only
remaining portion of tha Collection of Paintings
upon which we have not touched, namely, the
Rooms of the Portraits of the Painters, opening
from the landing of the main stairway, upon the
floor below the Gallery proper.
Most of the remarkable portraits in this Collec-
tion were painted by the artists themselves. It was
begun by the Cardinal Laopoldo de' Medici, and
authentic additions to it are constantly being made
up to the present time. We have space only for
the mere mention of a few of the more important
works in these rooms. Number 224 is Lucas Cra-
nach. Number 228, Rubens, the best in the Col-
3o8 tEbe art of tbe TOfflsi Palace
lection. Number 262, Carlo Dolci. Number 286,
Filippino Lippi, especially good. Number 288,
Raphael, especially good. Number 384 bis, Titian.
Number 434, Dtirer, especially good. Number 540,
Sir Joshua Reynolds, especially good. Number
549, Elizabeth Lebrun, especially good. Number
585, Watts. Number 588, Sir John Millais. Num-
ber 589, Puvis de Chavannes. Number 600, Lord
Leighton. Number 682, Corot. Number 722,
Alma Tadema. Number 752, Romney, especially
good. Number 11 76, Andrea dd Sarto. This is
sufificient to show the scope and fascinating interest
of the Collection. It is not often that one may
study so well as here the character of the great
artists as their own self-knowledge prompts them
to express it.
CHAPTER XX
THE UFFIZI GALLERY : THE SCULPTURES
Wisely has it been said that the life-history of
man may be read in the dwellings that he builds
for his dead. The gravet-maker is indeed a master-
builder when not only do " the houses that he
makes last till doomsday," but when they hold the
records of an unscriptured past.
For many centuries aftar the time of the Em-
peror Constantine, Roman and early Christian sar-
cophagi were in fashionablei demand in Italy,
among the great and wealthy, as costly caskets in
which might be laid away, as in a sacred shrine,
the bodies of their dead. Numerous examples of
such sanctified relics were to be seen in and about
every important Christian church or chapel of the
middle ages. In many cases, these sarcophagi were
elaborately decorated, with carved ornament and
figured symbolism of both pagan and Christian
import. It was just such elaborate tombs that held
the studious interest of the great thirteenth-century
architect and sculptor Niccola Pisano, and many
another stone-carver of later days. It was largely
309
3IO Ube art of tbe TUffisi palace
due to the great work of those early Gothic sculp-
tors in Italy that the popular interest in the antique
was revived. And this revival of interest in the
art of classic times was directly responsible for the
excavation of classic sites and buildings and the
formation of the great collections of classic sculp-
tures that marked the development of the Renais-
sance. No palace or villa of those days in Italy
could be considefed properly furnished without its
more or less numerous examples of Greek and
Roman sculpture, and the great family of the Med-
ici vied with the popes of Rome in the acquisition
of ancient marbles.
When the Grand Duke Francesco I transported
to Florence the numerous works of art that his
ancestors had scattered through their villas and
palaces, a large portion of the sculpture now in the
Uffizi was thus brought together. Subsequent ru-
lers added somewhat to the collection of antiques,
but, in the main, they cared more for the paintings
than the sculpture, which latter department, there-
fore, relapsed into a position of minor importance
in the Gallery. There are, however, many good
examples, well worthy of mention, to be found in
the corridors and in some of the rooms. Those
which have been placed in the Tribuna are popu-
larly regarded as the best, but it must be remem-
bered that these sculptures, in common with most
TUmH ©aller^: Ube Sculptures 3"
of the so-called Greek works in vogue during the
Renaissance, are at best only good Roman copies
of the finer Greek originals. The discovery of
genuioe examples of Hellenic art, through system-
atic excavation in Greece, was not begun until
much later times.
The much-admired Venus de' Medici, Number
342, was found in the extensive ruins of the Villa
of Hadrian, near Rome, in the fifteenth century,
and later purchased for the Uffizi collection by the
Cardinal Ferdinando da' Medici. A modern in-
scription on the base erroneously describes the fig-
ure as the work of Cleomenes, executed in Athens
during the third century b. c. It is possible that
the inscription is a copy of the one on the original
figure, but of that no certain evidence exists. This
statue is undoubtedly an ancient replica of a famous
Greek original, but it has been much over-rated by
the taste of the eighteenth century. The right
arm of the figure and both dapper hands are mod-
ern. The pose given to them lends to the figure
an air of afifectation. While the figure is somewhat
small, judged in relation to the modem convention-
ality, the proportions are good. The beauty of this
goddess, however, is only skin-deep and can in no
way stand in comparison with the grandeur of such
a figure as that of the Aphrodite of Melos in the
Louvre. Significantly enough, it never occurs to
312 Ube art of tbe xilfB3i IPalace
one to think of the Venus de' Medici as an Aphro-
dite. Her Roman name is better suited to her own
peculiar style of loveliness. It is worth noting that
a sculptor of the name of Cleomenes was active in
Rome during the reign of Augustus. Some ele-
ment of interest attaches to the fact that Napoleon
thought this Venus a fitting bride for the Apollo
del Belvedere, and desired to unite them in the
Louvre. Accordingly he took them thither, but
they were returned to Italy, and again separated,
in 1815. Executed in the same style as the Venus
is the Apollino, Number 345, the god being rep-
resented as an attractive adolescent youth. This
figure was also found in Rome, and brought to
Florence in 1780. It is supposed to be a Roman
copy of an original by Praxiteles.
Number 346, the fine and striking though repul-
sive figure of the so-called Arrotino, or Knife-
grinder, was found in Rome during the fourteenth
century and brought to Florence with the Venus.
It represents the muscular Scythian to whom Apollo
entrusted the task of flaying Marsyas. The man
crouches before a stone upon which he whets his
knife, pausing in his action for a moment and rais-
ing his brutal face. The work is admirably con-
ceived and executed.
The Wrestlers, Number 343, is a splendid an-
tique group, in which the strain and muscular ac-
VENUS DE' MEDICI
TUfflai (Bailers: Ube Sculptures 313
tion of the contest is well displayed. When found,
it was badly broken and has been considerably
restored, in some cases without much success. The
two 'heads, which were missing, were replaced with
other antique heads, quite lacking in fitness, that
belonged to works found elsewhere.
Number 344, a Dancing Satyr, has been attrib-
uted to Praxiteles. It is a very good figure, ana-
tomically excellent, whose head and arms were
supplied by Michelangelo in a style closely imi-
tating the antique.
Along both sides of the East Corridor, which
is over a hundred and seventy-five yards in length,
are ranged many of the remaining works of classic
sculpture, including several interesting sarcophagi.
In the vestibule, just outside the entrance to this
corridor are found a marble rearing horse, sup-
posed to be a portion of the famous Niobe group,
many other figures from which are in the Hall of
Niobe. Here also are two splendid Molossian
Dogs and a remarkable Boar, Number 19, a genu-
ine Greek work, one of the very finest pieces of
antique animal sculpture extant. In the Florentine
Meroato Nuovo there is an excellent copy of this
work in bronze. Near by, Numbers 16 and 17, are
quadrangular trophy-pillars, with excellent tri-
umphal reliefs. Various Roman portrait statues
adorn the niches of the Vestibule.
314 "G^be Hrt ot t&e iHtRsi palace
In the East Corridor, proper, at the northern
end is a large group. Number 38, representing
Hercules slaying the Centaur Nessos. The exten-
sive restorations include practically all of the figure
of Hercules and the upper part of the body of the
Centaur. Number 39 is a well-preserved sarcoph-
agus, embellished with reliefs representing scenes
from the life of the hero whose remains it enclosed.
The central panel, in which the hero offers a sac-
rifice, supplied Raphael with one of the composi-
tions used in his great tapestries. Number 43 is
an excellent portrait bust of Julius Caesar. The
Roman sculptors were far superior to the Greeks
in the matter of portraiture. Many of the works
so classed in this collection are admirable in their
rendition of character and personality. We can
notice only the best of them. Number 46 is a fine
bust of Livia, the wife of the Emperor Tiberius.
Number 47 is Augustus. Number 48, a really pow-
erful work, is Marcus Agrippa.
Number 59 is a good full-length figure of an
athlete with a vase. Number 60, a delightful head
of the youthful Brittanicus. Number 68 is another
interesting sarcophagus, decorated with reliefs of
the labours of Hercules. Such works as this were
frequently made " in stock " to be sold to any
buyer. Often a bust with a blank face was carved
on the sarcophagus, and when a purchaser for the
■Qltnsl ©allerp: Ube Sculptures 31s
wcFric was found, the features were cut in the face
according to his order. Many of such sarcophagi
preserved for us have never had the face carved in,
but present merely the blank form.
Number "j*] is a very good portrait of Otho, his
famous curled wig being splendidly executed.
Number 79, a beautiful Julia, daughter of Titus.
Number 85, in coarse contrast, a burly Vespasian.
Among the mythological subjects in the corri-
dor the best are : Number 82, Ariadne ; Number
88, Ganymede with the Eagle, badly discoloured;
Number 106, Mercury; Number 113, Venus, with
an ill-fitted head; Number 119, Apollo.
In the South Corridor is an excellent replica of
the popular Fedele della Spina, or Thorn Ex-
tractor, Number 138. A fine round altar, with
reliefs representing the Sacrifice of Iphigenia, bears
the name of Cleornenes. Numbers 35 and 36 are
seated portrait figures of Roman matrons, the
former, a magnificent work, being commonly iden-
tified as Agrippina. From the windows of this
Corridor may be obtained splendid views of the
Arno, the Ponte Vecchio, and the Court of the
Uffizi looking toward the Palazzo Vecchio.
The West Corridor contains fewer works. Num-
ber 155 is a Marsyas, restored by Donatello. Num-
ber 156, the same subject, is a part of the group
to which may have belonged the Arrotino in the
3i6 Ube art ot tbe Hlffisi palace
Tribuna. There follows a long series of more
formal busts of the Emperors of the Decadence.
Near the end, among several beautiful altars of
sacrifice, is a fine one dedicated to the Lares of
Augustus, Number 236. At the end, an " im-
proved " copy of the Laocoon Group by a Renais-
sance sculptor, Baccio Bandinelli. No one but Ban-
dinelli himself seems ever to have been able to
appreciate the improvement.
The Cabinet of Inscriptions, opening from the
West Corridor, contains numerous inscribed tab-
lets in Greek and Latin, let into the walls, together
with cinerary urns and votive and sepulchral re-
liefs. A few good statues are preserved here,
notably Number 262, Bacchus and Ampelus; Num-
ber 266, Venus Arania ; Number 265, Venus Gene-
trix; and a fine and dignified Priestess, Number
264, whose head is a modern restoration.
Beyond, in the Cabinet of the Hermaphrodite,
is a typical figure of the mythical son of Hermes
and Aphrodite, whose body became united and
identified, in single form, with that of the water-
nymph Salmacis, while he was bathing in her foun-
tain. It is Number 306, represented stretched upon
a lion-skin. The low?r portion is a restoration.
Such figures were popular as garden and fountain
decorations among the ancients. Number 318 is a
large Giant's Head, of the Pergamenian School,
mffisi ©allers: Zbc Sculptures 317
commonly called the Dying Alexander. This is a
ceiebrated fragment. Six large decorative reliefs,
with beautiful festoons and scrolls, are parts of the
balustrade of the famous Ara Pads, or Peace Altar
of Augustus, erected in Rome on a spot over which
the Corso now runs. Other fragments of this
great altar are still in situ beneath the street, while
still others are in the Museo della Terme in Rome.
The Hall of Niobe contains the famous series
of figures and groups of Niobe and her Children,
struck by the shafts of Diana and Apollo. Niobe,
it will be remembered, was queen of Thebes, and
boasted of the number and beauty of her children.
According to Homer she had six sons and six
daughters. In her boasting, Niobe derided the
goddess Latona, who had but two children, Apollo
and Diana. In revenge, Apollo and Diana slew all
of Niobe's children with unseen arrows, Apollo
first directing his shafts at the sons, and then Diana
directing hers at the daughters. When the last,
the youngest daughter, was killed, Niobe, in her
grief, was turned into a stone, from which a stream
of tears continued to flow.
The group from which these excellent figures
come is supposed to have formed the decoration
of the pediment of a temple. They are evidently
Roman copies of the Greek originals by Scopas
executed in the fourth century b. c. Most of these
3i8 XTbe art of tbe xafflsi palace
disconnected figures were found in Rome near the
Church of Saint John Lateran in 1583 and bought
by Cardinal Ferdinando de' Medici for his villa on
the Pincian Hill, whence they were brought to
Florence in 177 1. In ancient Rome they belonged
to the temple of Apollo Sosienus. The most stri-
king figures in the group are those of Niobe and
her youngest daughter. Number 241 ; a dying son,
Number 244; another young Niobide, Number
248, especially fine and generally regarded as the
best of the group; Number 253, another young
Niobide, is also excellent. Several figures, foun,d
elsewhere, but preserved here, have no connection
with the group. They are : Number 243, an
Apollo restored as a woman; Number 242, a fe-
male figure of unknown import, called the Trophos
or Nurse; Number 251, a Psyche; Number 249,
a Muse; Number 245, a so-called Narcissus. An
interesting drawing by an English architect, Mr.
C. R. Cockerell, displayed in the hall, exhibits an
attempt to rearrange the figures in the form of a
pedimental composition.
In the Cabinet of Gems, at the eastern end of
the South Corridor is found an interesting collec-
tion of some four hundred artistic jewels, and fine
examples of the goldsmith's craft, that belonged to
the Medici. Notable among the specimens in the
collection are two precious vases of sardonyx that
NIOBE AND HER YOUNGEST DAUGHTER
Tlimai (Bailers: "Cbe Sculptures 319
were the property of Lorenzo de' Medici; a Flor-
entine mosaic portrait of the Grand Duke Cosimo
III kneeling before an altar; a jasper cup in the
form of a Hydra encrusted with pearls and with
a well-carved figure of Hercules in gold; and a
rare and beautiful casket of rock-crystal, bearing
twenty-four small scenes from the life of Christ.
This is one of the finest specimens of such work to
be found in Florence. It was executed for Pope
Clement VII, who presented it to Caterina de'
Medici upon the occasion of her marriage to
Henry II of France. These pieces of mediaeval
craftsmanship are especially interesting when one
recalls the number of the great Renaissance artists
who received their earliest training in the shop of
the goldsmith. In such a list, among others, are
found the names of Ghiberti, Ghirlandajo, Bru-
nelleschi, Verrocchio, Luca della Robbia, Orcagna,
Andrea del Sarto, Cellini, Pollaiuolo and Botticelli.
CHAPTER XXI
THE BARGELLO AND THE CATHEDRAL MUSEUM
Well within arrow-shot of the Uffizi and the
Palazzo Vecchio stands the grim and ragged old
stone edifice, with its bold, square tower, commonly
known as II Bargello, one of the most important
and characteristically mediaeval buildings in Flor-
ence. Previous to the middle of the thirteenth cen-
tury, the site was occupied by the small Palazzo
dei Boscoli, an ancient residential palace of which
the tower only remains. About the year 1250, the
main structure of this little fortress-domicile was
razed, and upon the site adjoining the tower was
erected a new palace intended as an official resi-
dence for the powerful Capitano del Popatjo, a sort
of deputy Chief Magistrate whose functions in-
cluded the execution of sentences. The Chief Mag-
istrate, himself, was called Podesta.
In the course of a few years after the completion
of the first part of the new palace, it became the
residence of the Podesta, and was enlarged and
improved to accommodate the needs of this official.
The exceedingly picturesque inner court, with a
320
ysatQcllo an5 CatbeOral /iDuseum 321
wide stone stairway, displays upon its walls many
armorial bearings of the various Magistrates who
resided in the palace. , The Podesta was chosen for
a term of one year only, which accounts for the
large number of these escutcheons. He was re-
quired to be a member of a foreign family, of good
standing and Guelphic adherence. This partisan-
ship is indicated in the battlements of the palace
and tower, which are flat on the top. The Ghibel-
line battlements were notched.
During the sixteenth century, under the Medici
Grand Dukes, the Magistracy of the Podesta was
suppressed and the palace given over to the so-
called Capitano di Giustizia, or Bargello, an officer
who combined the functions of the Chief of Police
and Executioner. From his title the structure took
its new popular name, by which it is still known.
In the middle of the nineteenth century the prison
cells into which the old halls had been cut up were
torn out and the entire building carefully restored
and fitted up as a National Museum. It contains
historic examples of the plastic and industrial arts
of Italy. No study of Florentine art would be
complete without reference to the interesting col-
lection in the Bargello.
Just within the entrance, on the ground floor, is
a large vaulted basement hall, poorly lighted, con-
taining a fine collection of weapons and implements
322 ube Hrt of tbe xxma ipaiacc
of waf. Beyond opens the magnificent old court
of which we have made mention, in the colonnade
of which stand some inferior sculptures and two
unfinished figures by Michelangelo. One of these
is a Dying Adonis of masterly conception, while
the other is a Victory intended as part of the dec-
oration of the great tomb of Pope Julius II. Mi-
chelangelo's design for this superb structure was
most elaborate and he began many figures for it,
but the project turned into a great disappointment
and all that ever came of it is the monument with
the great Moses, in the Church of San Pietro in
Vincoli, in Rome.
From the opposite corner of the court, a door
opens into the Hall of Stone Sculpture and the
Room of the Chimney-piece, containing a number
of fine and interesting Renaissance marbles. The
great mantel, from which the latter room takes its
name, was executed by Benedetto da Rovezzano for
the Borgherini palace. It is remarkably fine and
beautiful, a t)rpical example of the domestic sculp-
ture of the High Renaissance. Beside it are sev-
eral interesting reliefs by the same sculptor, taken
from the monument to San Giovanni Gualberto in
the Monastery of the Salvi, which was badly muti-
lated by the imperial soldiery during the siege of
Florence in 1530. They represent scenes from the
life of the saint.
Bargello anO Catbe&ral /iDuseum 323
In the same room are several important works,
mostly unfinished, by Michelangelo. A small Mask
of a Faun, Number 124, is said to be the one exei-
outed by the great sculptor when a boy in the school
of the Casino di San Marco. It was a copy of an
antique that the young apprentice had found in the
garden, and he had carved the grinning mouth with
a full set of teeth. Upon this Lorenzo de' Medici
had made some joking comment. " Dost thou not
know," said he, " that old people, such as this fel-
low seems to be, do not have all their teeth? " The
young sculptor accepted the criticism seriously and
knocked out some of the front teeth, carving the
empty gums accordingly. Another youthful work
by Michelangelo is the Drunken Bacchus, Number
128, already executed in a most masterly manner,
done in Rome during the last years of the fifteenth
century. In the comer of the room is a splendid
unfinished bust of Brutus, in which the great sculp-
tor's manner of using his chisel can be plainly seen.
Michelangelo is said to have remarked that he had
not the heart to finish this work after Florence lost
her liberty. An interesting Madonna and Child,
near by. Number 123, in high relief, is ailso at-
tributed to Michelangelo.
On the upper floor of the main structure is the
large Hall of Donatello, lately restored and dec-i
orated in its original style. During the sixteenth
324 i Ube Hrt of tbe mffisi Palace
century, this hall was cut up into four floors of
prison cells, eight on each floor. Here are now
preserved some of Donatello's best works of sculp-
ture, together with casts of his masterpieces lo-
cated elsewhere. The collection is especially prized
by the Florentines, for Donate di Niccolo di Beitto
Bardi was and still is one of Florence's best loved
artists. His common nickname of Donatello is a
popular and endearing diminutive.
Among the original works by this versatile and
strongly influential genius here preserved, the most
prominent place is given to the magnificent Saint
George, a superb and chivalrous representation of
the warrior saint, executed in 1416, that once stood
in a niche on the wall of the Church of Or San
Michele. It is one of the very finest things in Flor-
ence, and in order the better to preserve it from
injury, it has been replaced with a good copy in
its original position, while here in the Bargello, the
priceless statue stands in a niche reproducing that
at Or San Michele. Vasari's words of enthusi-
astic praise o'f this work are worth quoting.
" For the Guild of Armorers, Donatello executed
a most animated figure of Saint George, in his
armour. The brightness of youthful beauty, gen-
erosity, and bravery shine forth in his face; his
attitude gives evidence of a proud and terrible im-
petuosity; the character of the saint is indeed ex-
DONATELLO. — SAINT GEORGE
Bargello anb Catbe&ral Museum 325
pressed most wonderfully, and life seems to move
within the stone. It is certain that in no modern
figure has there yet been seen so much animation,
nor so life-like a spirit in marble, as nature and art
have combined to produce by the hand of Donato
in this statue."
It will be remembered that Michelangelo was not
born until 1475, ten years after the death of Dona-
tello, and thus the great inspiration that came from
the earlier artist to the later will be understood.
The youthful Michelangelo began his active labours
just when the fame of the recently deceased master
was at its height. It is said that Michelangelo one
day stood before this Saint George, looking up at
it in its beautiful niche. Long and silently he
stood, and then pronounced the single word
"March!"
Near by stands a youthful David, in bronze.
Number 56, a slender and charming figure, which
is one of the earliest Renaissance efiforts to revive
the classic study of tlie nude. Number 57 is an-
other David, less pleasing, with tha head of Goli-
ath at his feet. At one side. Number 61, is an
excellent Saint John the Baptist, and on the wall.
Number 63, a high relief of most delightful con-
ception and execution, representing the Baptist as
a child. Donatello's sculptures of children have
never been surpassed. Forward stands the stone
326 Ube art of tbe xatHsi Palace
figure of the so-called Marzocco, the heraldic lion
of Florence, holding the Florentine lily. This fig-
ure stood for many years on the ringhiera or plat-
form before the Palazzo Vecchio, where it is now
replaced by a bronze cast.
In the later, eastern portion of the palace is the
old prison chapel, appropriately dedicated to the
Magdalen, with fragmentary remains of frescoes
by Giotto or painters of his school, found under
whitewash in 1840. Especially interesting is the
much-repainted portrait of Dante, done from life,
appearing in the damaged picture representing the
Saints in Paradise on the end wall.
The long halls adjoining the chapel contain mis-
cellaneous art works of varied description, paint-
ings, small bronzes, ivories, enamels and wood-
carvings, as well as shields and weapons, and works
in gold and amber, somewhat without the scope of
the present work, although all deserving of inspec-
tion. In the two halls beyond, opening from the
gallery of the courtyard, are some remarkable
larger bronzes, however, to which we must devote
attention.
Two of the most interesting of these bronzes are
Numbers 12 and 13, the panels representing the
Sacrifice of Abraham, executed in 1402 by Lo-
renzo Ghiberti and Filippo Brunelleschi, in compe-
tition for the commission for the great bronze
ffiatgcUo sn& Catbe&ral /iDueeum 327
doors of the Biaptistery. Ghiberti's design is the
superior one, in grace and beauty of Hna and com-
position, as well as in delicacy of treatment. It is
cast in one piece. Brunelleschi's is vehement, harsh
and angular, forceful but with little grace, and cast
in several pieces, Upon the exhibition of tha pan-
els, when the competition was opened, it is said that
Brunelleschi at once recognized the superiority of
Ghiberti's work, and withdrew from the contest.
The award was made to Ghiberti, and Brunelleschi
devoted himself to problems of engineering and
architecture, raising the wonderful dome of the
Cathedral without scaffolding, a genuine miracle
of construction. These two panels are the ear-
liest extant sculptures of the true Renaissance
period.
Number 22 is Andrea Verrocchio's celebrated
David, executed in 1476, one of the masterpieces
of the! sculptor. There is something about the head
that seems to be a foretaste of Leonardo da Vinci.
The meagre bodily deivelopment is characteristic of
Verrocchio's work. In this respect this figure af-
fords a striking contrast with the David of Michel-
angelo in the Academy.
Number 82, Giovanni da Bologna's Flying Mer-
cury, is one of the most frequently copied bronzes
of the Renaissance. This lithe and airy Messenger
of the Gods, poised upon a gust of wind blown
328 Zbc Hrt ot tbe miRsi Palace
from the mouth of a Zephyr, is easily one of the
lightest figures ever made in bronze. Its balance
is remarkable, and in grace and movement it can
hardly be excelled.
On the floor above is a good collection of reliefs,
by Verrocchio, Benedetto da Majano, Mino de Fie-
sole, and others, together with many fine works in
glazed terra-cotta by Andrea and Luca della Rob-
bia and their School. These interesting and charm-
ing works, however, are in a field which we must
not at this time enter, contenting ourselves only
with the remark that it forms quite a study by
itself. In a relatively short period of time, it had
its origin, its rise, its zenith and its decadence.
Good examples of all these periods may be seen in
the collection.
We must not, however, close our present study
of Florentine art without reference to two priceless
wrorks of decorative sculpture preserved in the lit-
tle Museo di Santa Maria del Fiore, commonly
called the Cathedral Museum, in the Piazza del «
Duomo.
About the year 1885, while workmen were en-
gaged upon the construction of the new fagade of
the Cathedral of Florence, there was found in a
subterranean chapeJ in the crypt of the Cathedral
a pile of sculptured consoles and cornices, half con-
cealed under a mass of rubbish. The attention of
DONATELLO. — CANTORIA FROM THE CATHEDRAL
LUCA DELLA ROBBIA. — CANTORIA FROM THE CATHEDRAL
BarQello anD CatbeOral /iDuseum 329
the Cathedral authorities was called to the find and
at once they recognized the brackets and framing
of two fine organ-lofts, the sculptured panels of
which were then in the Bargello. These noble
works had been executed during the first half of
the fifteenth century, one by Donatello and one by
Luca della Robbia, for the choir of the Cathedral.
For about two hundred and fifty years, these beau-
tiful galleries had hung opposite one another on the
walls of the Cathedral, and were finally removed
and taken to pieces in 1688. The panels with
groups of children were placed in the Uffizi and
later in the Bargello, while the architectural fra-
ming was stored away and forgotten. In 1890 the
fragments were put together again, with minor
restorations, and placed opposite one another upon
the walls of the large hall of the Cathedral Museum,
So located, these wonderful works of art afford a
splendid opportunity for a comparative study of
the effectiveness of the two designs. Both have
carefully observed the old rule of architecture, that
one may ornament construction, but never con-
struct ornament. Both were finished in the same
year, 1438. Luca's work was begun in 1431, two
years earlier than Donatello's. Although the sculp-
ture and ornamentation on Luca's oantoria is of
finer and more delicate mould than that of Dona-
tello, its plan is simpler. The front of the gallery
330 tibe Htt of tbe xntRjt palace
bears four panels "With exquisite figures Of sitigiing'
Ghildreii. Two similar patlels form th© ends and
four more fill the spaces between the supporting
consoles. The scheme of the whole is supplied by
Psalm CL, an Exhortation to Praisei God, ' — Viith
instrument and song, — and the Latin text of the
Psalm appears in three lines along the cornices.
The two end panels have been removed and hung
lower on the wall for better inspectionj being re-
placed aboVe by copies. All these panels are well-
known through full-sized and reduced reproduc-
tions in cast. Pfobably no works of sculpture of
the Renjaissance haVe been so frequently repro-
dticed and are found in so many modem homes
as these beautiful and graceful panels of singing
and playing children.
Donatello's cantoria shoWs a feeling somewhat
differeiit. The fignired decoration on the front is
in one long paneJ, set in behind little columns en-
crusted with mosaic, which serves to produce the
effect of a division of the panel into four parts.
Here the children are vigorous and active little
winged geilii, rUhning and playing, singing and
dancing. The finish of these figures is more rough
than that of Luca della Robbia, but the effect at a
distance is much mor6 varied and pleasing. Luca's
cantoria flattens and loses its character when seen
froitt a distance. Both of these splelndid pieces of
3Bargello anb Catbe&ral /iDuseum 331
work, however, are superb types of the delicate
beauty of workmanship that was so strikingly char-
acteristic of the decorative sculpture of the Renais-
sance. No finer examples could be selected.
THE END.
BiblioGtapb^
Allen. — Florence.
Baedeker. — Handbook for Northern Italy.
Berenson. — The Study and Criticism of Italian Art.
Beeenson. — Central Itahan Painters of the Renaissance.
Berenson. ^ Florentine Painters of the Renaissance.
Berenson. — Venetian Painters of the Renaissance.
Blasheield. — Italian Cities
Brown. — The Fine Arts.
Bryan. — Dictionary of Painters and Engravers.
Bryant. — Pictures and Their Painters.
BuRCKHARDX. — ■ The Cicerone.
Cartwright. — Painters of Florence.
Clement. — ■ Christian Symbohsm.
Clement. — A Handbook of Legendary and Mythological Art.
Crowe and Cavalcaselle. — A History of Painting in Italy.
Crowe and Cavalcaselle. — A History of Painting in North Italy.
Crowe and Cavalcaselle. — Raphael: His Life and Works.
Crowe and Cavalcaselle. — The Life and Times of Titian.
Cruttwell. — A Guide to the Paintings in the Florentine Galleries.
Gardner. — The Story of Florence.
Grifi. — Saunterings in Florence.
Hare. — • Cities of Northern and Central Italy.
Harkness. — Francis and Dominic, and the Mendicant Orders.
HowELLS. — Tuscan Cities.
HoYT. — The World's Painters and Their Pictures.
HuRLL. — The Life of Our Lord in Art.
HuRLL. — The Madonna in Art.
Hyett. — Florence: Her History and Her Art.
Jameson. — Sacred and Legendary Art.
333
334 aBtblfograpb?
Jameson. — Legends of the Monastic Orders.
Jameson. — Legends of the Madonna.
Karoly. — The Paintings of Florence.
KuGLER. — Italian Schools of Painting.
Lafarge. — Considerations on Painting.
Lindsay. — ■ Sketches of the History of Christian Art.
LuBKE. — History of Art.
Machiavelij:. — History of Florence.
Marquand and Frothingham. — History of Sculpture.
MORELLI. — Italian Painters.
Oliphant. — The Makers of Florence;
Pater. — The Renaissance.
Perkins. — Historical Handbook of Italian Sculpture.
Powers and Powe. — Outlines for the Study of Art.
Rea. — Tuscan Artists: Their Thought and their Work.
Ricci. — Art in Northern Italy.
Ross. — Florentine Palaces and their Stories.
Rtjskin. — Modem Painters.
RnSKiN. — Ariadne Florentine.
Rtjskin. — Mornings in Florence,
Rtjskin. — Val d'Arno.
Shedd. — Famous Sculptors and Sculpture.
Stearns. — The Midsummer of Italian Art.
Stillman and Cole. — Old Italian Masters.
SvMONDS. — The Life of Michelangelo Buonaiotti.
Symonds. — The Renaissance in Italy.
Taine. — Italy: Florence and Venice.
Twining. — Symbols of Christian Art.
Van Dyke. — How to Judge of a Picture.
Van Dyke. — History of Painting.
Vasaei. — Lives of the Painters.
WoLFFUN. — The Art of the Italian Renaissance.
Woltmann and Wobrmann. — History of Painting.
Yriarte. — Florence.
tbc iFmportartt Morfts of Hrt iReferreb
to in trb(6 Booft
THE MUSEUM OF THE BIGALLO
PAGE
Italo - Byzantine School. — Crucifix . ... 26
THE CHURCH OF THE SANTA TRINITA
Italo ^ Byzantine School. — Crucifix . . . . 4, 26
THE CHURCH Ot" SANTA MARIA NOVELLA
GiMABUE. — The Rucellai Madoniia 42
THE ACADEMY GALLERY
NO.
ji — CosiMO RosSELLi. — Santa Barbara in Glory . . . 109
53 — Perugino. — Christ ill Gethsemane 122
55 — FrA Filippo LiJSi. '- Madotltia atid Child Eiithironed . 85
56 — pERtTGiNO. — The Deposition 122
57 — PesugiNo. -^ The Assui^tibfl 119
61 — ANDfeEA DEL SARto. — Two Angels 126
62 _- Fra Filippo Lippi. — The Coronation of the Virgin . 83
65 — SiGNORELLi. — The Magdalen at the Foot of the Cross . 116
yo _ MASaccio. — Saint Aima Enthroned with the Virgin
and Child 78
yi — Vereocchio. — The Baptism of Christ . . . .103
72 — PfesELLiNo. — Predella to Ntimbef 55 ..*'.-. 87
yj — Botticelli. — The Coronation of the Virgin . ^ . . 92
74 — Botticelli. — Fredella to Number 73 . . *• . . 92
76 — AtiilREA del Sarto. — Four Saints . . . . .125
77 — Andrea DtL SARTO. — Predella to Number 76 . .126
78 — Perugino. — The Crucifixion . . . . . • ^?4
yg Fra FiLltPO Lippi. — Madonna Adoring the Child . 81
80 — Botticelli. — Spring . . . . . . . • 88
g2 -^ fnA Filippo Lippi. — Madonna Adormg the Child . 82
84 — ScrioOt OF Verrocchio. — Tobias and the Archangels . 108
335
336 tEbe Umportant Morhs of Hrt
NO. PAGE
8s — Botticelli. — Madonna and Child Enthroned with
Saints and Angels 94
86 — Fka Filippo Lippi. — Predella with Three Scenes . 87
92 — Lorenzo di Credi. — The Adoration of the Shepherds 107
97 — Fra Bartolommeo. — The Vision of Saint Bernard . 113
98 — FiLippiNO LiPPi AND Perugino. — The Descent from
the Cross 124
99 — Byzantine School of the XIII Centdry. — The
Magdalen in Penitence with Scenes from Her Life . 27
100 — Byzantine School op the XIII Century. — Saint
John the Baptist 34
loi — Bonaventura Berlinghieri. — Scenes from the Life
of Christ 34
102 — CiMABUE. — Madonna Enthroned with Angels and
Prophets 40
103 — Giotto. — Madonna Enthroned with Angels . . 44
104 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Visitation 47
los — Taddeo Gaddi. — ■ The Nativity of Christ ... 47
106 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Adoration of the Magi . 47
107 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Presentation in the Temple 47
108 — Taddeo Gaddi. — Christ Disputing in the Temple 47
109 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Baptism of Christ ... 47
no — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Transfiguration . . . 47,49
111 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Last Supper . . . 47,49
112 — Taddeo Gaddi. — ■ The Crucifixion .... 47,49
113 — Taddeo Gaddi. — ^ The Resurrection . . . 47,49
114 — Taddeo Gaddi. — • Christ Appearing to the Holy Women
47,49
115 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Incredulity of Thomas . 47,49
117 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Bishop of Assisi Clothing Saint
Francis 47, 49, 52
118 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Vision of Pope Innocent III, 47, 49, 53
119 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Approval of the Franciscan
Order 47, 49, S3
120 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Fiery Apparition of Saint Fran-
cis 47, 49. 54
121 — ^ Taddeo Gaddi. — The Martyrdom of Seven Francis-
cans 47, 49, S4
122 — ^ Taddeo Gaddi. — -The Confirmation of the Franciscan
Order 47, 49, S4
123 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Apparition of the Christ Child
to Saint Francis ...... 47, 49, 55
124 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Apparition of Saint Francis to
Saint Anthony of Padua .... 47, 49, SS
125 — Taddeo Gaddi. — Saint Francis Receiving the Stig-
mata 47, 49, 56
126 — Taddeo Gaddi. — The Death of Saint Francis 47, 49, $(>
134 — Ambrogio Lorenzetti. — The Presentation in the
Temple 58
Ube Umportant Morhs ot Hrt 337
NO. PAGE
143 — Don Lorenzo Monaco. — The Annunciation . . 6i
154 — Botticelli. — Tobias and the Archangel . . . io8
157 — Botticelli. — Pieta (Predella Scene) .... 97
158 — Botticelli. — The Death of Saint Augustine (Predella
Scene) 97
159 — Baldovinetti. — The Holy Trinity .... 100
161 — Botticelli. — Salome with the Head of John the Bap-
tist (Predella Scene) 97
162 — Botticelli. — The Vision of Saint Augustine (Predella
Scene) 97
164 — Signorelli. — Madonna and Saints . . . ■ 117
16s — Gentile da Faeeiano. — The Adoration of the Magi 71
166 — Fea Angelico. — The Descent from the Cross . 67
172 — Fea Bartolommeo. — Portrait of Savonarola as Saint
Peter Martyr 112
19s — DoMENico Ghielandajo. — The Adoration of the Shep-
herds lOI
233 — Baldovinetti. — Three Scenes in the Life of Christ . 100
241 — Peeugino. — Portrait of Don Baldassare, Abbot of
Vallombrosa 122
242 — Peeugino. — Portrait of Don Biagio Milanesi, General
of the Vallombrosan Order 122
266 — Fea Angelico. — The Last Judgment .... 70
Sculpture
Michelangelo. — David 15, 233, 327
THE MUSEUM OF SAN MARCO
Frescoes
Fea Angelico. — The Crucifixion with Saint Domi-
nick 132
Fra Angelico. — Saint Peter Martyr . . . .133
Fra Angelico. — Saint Dominick 134
Fea Angelico. — Christ as a Pilgrim Received by Do-
minicans 134
Fra Angelico. — Saint Thomas Aquinas . . . 135
Poccetti. — Scenes from the Life of Saint Antonino . 134
Sogliani and Fea Bartolommeo. — " La Provvi-
denza" 135
Fea Angelico. — The Crucifixion with Numerous
Saints 136
DoMENico Ghielandajo. — The Last Supper . . 141
Fea Angelico. — The Annunciation .... 142
Fea Angelico. — The Transfiguration .... 143
Fea Angelico. — The Coronation of the Virgin . .143
Fea Angelico; — Madonna Enthroned with Saints . 144
338 Ube Tmportant Motfis of Uxt
MO, F4SS
Easel Paintings
21 — School or Fra FiLippo I-ippi. — The Annunciation . 135
F^ Baktolommeq, — Portrait of Savonarola . , 144
Florentine School of the XV Centdry. — The Exe-
cution of Savoqarola in the Piazza Signoria . , 144
PoNTftRivio, — Portrait of Cosiijio de' Medici the Elder 145
Fea Benedetto. — The Coronation of the Virgin . ■r4S
Fra AnceijIco. — Tbe Madoruia of the Star . , 144
Fra Angelico. — The Annunciation and The Adora-
tion of the Magi 14$
THE UFFIZI GALLERY
Paintings
1 — Greco - Byzantine School of the X Century. —
Madonna Enthroned with Angels . . . .156
2 — Italq - Byzantine School qf the XII Century, —
Madonna , , . . 157
3 — Italian ScbooI' of th?: XH Century. — Christ on
the Crpss ......... 157, 159
4 — Italian Schpoi, of the XIII Cpntury, -^ Christ on
the Cross 158
5 — GuiDO DA Siena. — Madonna 165
6 — Puccio Capanna (?). — Christ on the Cross . . .158
7 — T Florentine School of the XIV Century. -^ Ma-
donna Enthroned with Saints Peter and Paul . . 159
8 — Don Lorenzo Monaco. — Christ in Gethsemane . 160
10 — Florentine School of the XIV Century. — Saint
Bartholomew Enthroned 162
12 — School of Giotto. — Christ on the Cross . . .160
12 — Andrea pjiL Cabtagno, — The Crucifijfipn , , .220
14 — School of Ojlcagna. — Saint John the Evangeljst En-
throned .......,,. 161
15 — PiETRO Lorenzetti. — Madoims. ..... 165
16 — PlETRP Lorenzetti. — The Herjnits of the The^aid . 165
17 — Fra Angelico. -^ The Madonna of the Linajijoli , 177
30 — Florentine ScBpOL of the XIV Centtjey, -r- S»int
Cecilia Enthrprsed. with Scenes from Her pfe . 162
22 — Raffaeljno DEL GarBD. — Madonpa and Saints • ■ 228
23 — SniONE Martini and Lippo Memw. — The Ao°«Rcia-
tion with Saints 166
27 — GiOTTiNO (?), — The Descent from the Cross .168
30 — Piero Pqli.aiuoi-0. — Portrait of Ga]eaz«a Sforza,
Duke of Milari 224
30 bis Ambrogio de Prejjis- — Portrait of a Man ■ 290
3Q — BoTnGp;.Li, — The Birth of Vejius 19S
39 — Don LqrinSIO Monaco. — The Adoration of the Magi 160
Zbe important tPQlorfts of Hrt 339
NO. PAGE
40 — Don Lorenzo Monaco. — PietEi i6o
41 — Don Lorenzo Monaco. — Madonna and Saints . i6o
45 — Lorenzo di Bicci. — Saints Cosimo and Damiano . 169
•52 — Paolo Uccello. — A Battle Scene .... 203
56 ^ Baldovinetxi. — The Annunciation .... 222
60 — BaiboVineiti. — Madonna and Saints .... 222
6s — Cosimo Rosselli. — Madonna in Glory . . . 224
6s — Cosimo Rosselli. — Adoration of the Magi . 203
66 — School of Botticelli. ^- The Banquet of Ahasuerus i6g
67 — ■ School of Botticelli. — The Banquet of Vashti . 169
68 — School of Botticelli. — ■ The Triumph of Mordecai 169
69 — PiERO PoLLAluoLO. — Hope 201
70 — Piero Pollaiuolo. — Justice 185.
71 — Fra Bartolommeo and Alberhnelli. — The Last
Judgment . 23d
71 — Piero Pollaiuolo. — Temperance .... 201
72 — Piero Pollaiuolo. — Faith 201
73 — Piero Pollaiuolo. — Charity 185
74 — SiONORELLi. — Madonna 212,217
81 — Piero di Cosimo. — The Immaculate Conception . 227
83 — Piero di Cosimo. — Perseus Liberating Andromeda . 228
.91 — DUrer. — ■ The Madonna with the Pear . . . 294
93 — Andrea del Sarto. — Noli me Tangere . . . 245
13s — ■ Sir Peter Lely. — • Portrait of Nell Gwytme . . 292
137 — Giovanni da San Giovanni. — The Joke of the Parish
Priest Arlotto 292
140 — Rubens. — Henry IV at the Battle of Ivry . . 303
147 — Rubens. — The Entry of Henry ly into Paris after
the Battle of Ivry ' . . 303
154 — Bronzing. — Portrait of Lucrezia de' Pucci . 255
159 — Bronzing. — Portrait of Bartolommeo Panciatichi . 255
163 — ■ Sustermans. — Portrait of Galileo .... 305
167 — Bronzing. — Portrait of a Lady 291
169 — BarocciO. — The " Madonna del Popolo " . . . 291
172 — Bronzing. — Portrait of Eleanora of Toledo, Wife of
Cosimo I, and Her Son Ferdinando .... 291
180 — Rubens. — Portrait of Helen Fourment, the Second
Wife of the Artist 304
188 — Andrea del Sarto. — Portrait of Lucrezia del Fede,
the Wife of the Artist 290'
190 — Gerard van Honthorst. — The Adoration of the
Shepherds 3°S
191 — Sassofeerato. - — Mater Dolorosa .... 292
197 — Rubens. — Portrait of Isabella Brandt, the First Wife
of the Artist 265
198 — Bronzino. — Portrait of a Young Woman . .291
210 — School oe Rubens. — Philip IV of Spain on Horse-
back 3°4
220 — Snyders. — The Boar Hunt 304i
340 Zbc Important Mort?s of Hrt
NO. PAGE
237 — Qdentin Matsys. — Double Portrait of the Painter
and His Second Wife 301
280 — Andrea del Sarto. — Portrait of the Artist . . 244
287 — Perugino. — Portrait of Francesco delle Opere . . 249
571 — Carotto. — Portrait of a Warrior and His Page . 282
576 — School of Titian. — Portrait of Jacopo Sansovino . 281
577 — Paris Boedone. — Portrait of a Man . . . .283
579 — School of Paolo Veronese. — The Annunciation . 286
582 — Moroni. — Portrait of a Man 261
583 — Catena. — Pieta 281
583 bis Carpaccio. — The Finding of the Cross . . -274
584 — BissoLO. — Madonna with Saint Peter . . .274
584 bis CiMA DA Conegliano. — Madonna . . . .274
586 — Moroni. — Portrait of a Man 284
589 — Paolo Veronese. — The Martyrdom of Saint Gius-
tina 286
590 — School of Titian. — Madonna and the Child Baptist . 281
592 — Sebastiano del Piombo. — The Death of Adonis . 283
595 — Jacopo Bassano (?). — Portraits of the Painter's
Family 283
596 — School of Paolo Veronese. — Esther before Ahas-
uerus 286
599 — Titian. — Portrait of the Duchess of Urbino . . 278
601 — Tintoretto. — Portrait of Admiral Veniero . . 284
603 — Paolo Veronese. — Portrait of a Man . . . 286
604 — Carletto. — Madonna with Saints and Angels . 286
605 — Titian. — Portrait of the Duke of Urbino . . .278
607 — Paris Bordone. — Portrait of a Young Man . . 283
609 — School of Titian. — The Battle of Cadore . . 280
610 — Jacopo Bassano. — Hunting Dogs .... 283
614 — Titian. — Portrait of Giovanni delle Bande Nere . 279
618 — School of Titian. — • Madonna 280
619 — Palma Vecchio. — Judith 281
621 — GlORGiONE. — The Child Moses Undergoing the Trial
by Fire 275
622 — GiORGiONE. — A Knight of Malta 276
623 — Palma Vecchio. — Santa Conversazione . . 281
625 — School of Titian. — Madonna with Saint Catherine 281 "
626 — Titian. — Flora .277
628 — Bonifazio Veronese. — The Last Supper . . .282
629 — Moroni. — Portrait of a Man 284
630 — GiORGioNE. — The Judgment of Solomon . .275
631 — Giovanni Bellini. — An Allegory of the Church . 272
633 — Titian. — Madonna and Child with Saint Anthony
Abbot 277
638 — Tintoretto. — Portrait of Sansovino 284
642 — Moroni. — Portrait of Giovanni Antonio Pantera . 285
64s — Savoldo. — The Transfiguration 283
648 — Titian. — Caterina Cornaro 280
XLbc Umpoctant Morfts of Brt 341
NO. PAGE
650 — School op Palma Vecchio. — Portrait of a Geometri-
cian 281
671 — Watteatj. — Fete Champetre 296
698 — Hendrik Bles. — Madonna Enthroned with Saints . 301
703 — Hans Memmng. — Madonna Enthroned with Angels 300
708 — Geraed David (?). — Adoration of the Magi . . 301
713 — ■ KuLMBACH. — Saint Peter Walking on the Sea . . 294
713 bis K.ULMBACH. — -The Martyrdom of Saint Peter . . 294
724 — KuLMBACH. — The Martyrdom of Saint Paul . . 294
729 — KuLMBACH. — The Liberation of Saint Peter . . 294
731 — Flemish School of the XVI Century. — The Adora-
tion of the Magi 297
740 — KuLMBACH. — The Preaching of Saint Peter . . 294
740 bis KuLMBACH. — Saint Paul Taken Up to Heaven . . 294
744 — Nicholas Froment. — Triptych Tabernacle with the
Raising of Lazarus 297
748 — KtTLMBACH. — The Capture of Saints Peter and Paul 295
749 — Petrus Cristus (?). — Double Portrait of Man and
Woman 298
762 — JoosT VAN Cleee. — Mater Dolorosa .... 302
763 — SusTEEMANS. — Portrait of Claudia de' Medici . . 305
764 — Denner. — Portrait 296
76s — Hans Holbein the Younger. — Portrait of Sir Rich-
ard Southwell 296
766 -^ DilRER. — ■ Portrait of the Artist's Father . . . 294
768 — DURER. — Saint James the Greater .... 294
769 — Memling. — • Portrait of a Youth 301
777 — DiJRER. — Head of Saint Philip 293
778 — Memling. — Benedictine Monk in the Character of
Saint Benedict 301
780 — Memling. — Portrait of a Youth 301
795 — Roger van der Weyden. — The Entombment . . 298
801 — Memling. — ■ Portrait of a Youth 301
801 bis School oe Memling. — Portrait of a Youth . . 301
822 — Lucas Cranach the Elder. — Portrait of Katharina
von Bora . . ' 295
838 — Lucas Cranach the Elder. — Portrait of Martin
Luther 295
84s — Lucas Cranach the Elder. — Double Portrait of Jo-
hannes and Friedrich, Electors of Saxony . . 295
846 — Gerard David. — The Deposition .... 301
847 — Lucas Cranach the Elder. — Double Portrait of Me-
lancthon and Luther 295
848 — Claude Lorraine. — Landscape 296
854 — Franz van Mieris the Elder. — The Charlatan . 302
890 — Franz van Mieris the Elder. — Portrait of the Artist 303
992 — Peter Brueghel the Elder. — The Way to Calvary 302
806 — Flemish School oe the XV Century. — The Cruci-
fixion 298
342 Zbc irmportant Morfts of art
NO. PAGE
918 — Metsu. — The Lute Player 302
926 — Dou. — The Pancake Seller 302
928 — Peter Brueghel the Elder. — Country F6te . 302
941 — Franz van Mieeis the Elder. — The Courtesan . 302
972 — Metsu. — A Lady and a Sportsman .... 302
1002 — CoRREGGio. — Madonna, Child and Angels . . 289
1006 — PAEMiGiAinNO. — Madonna and Saints . . . 289
1025 — Mantegna. — The Madonna of the Quarries . . 288
1 104 — Spagnoletto. — Saint Jerome 258
1107 — Volterra. — The Murder of the Innocents . . 257
1 108 — Titian. — Reclining Venus Caressed by a Cupid 248, 260
1 109 — DoMENiCHiNO. — Portrait of Cardinal Agucchia . 265
mo — Alfani. — The Holy Family 257
nil — Mantegna. — Triptych with the Adoration of the
Magi 271
1112 — Andrea del Sarto. — The Madonna of the Harpies 240
1114 — Gdercino. — The Sibyl of Samos . 249, 292.
HIS — Van Dyck. — Portrait of Sir John Montfort . .266
1116 — Titian. — Portrait of the Archbishop Beccadelli . 261
1117 — Titian. — Reclining Venus .... 248,259,278
1118 — CoEREGGio. — The Repose in Egypt . . . .263
1 119 — Baroccio. — Portrait of Francesco Maria II della
Rovere 291
1120 — Raphael. — Portrait of a Lady 251
1121 — Carotto. — Portrait of Elisabetta Gonzaga . . 258
1122 — Perugino. — Virgin and Child with Saints John Bap-
tist and Sebastian ....... 230
1123 — Sebastiano del Piombo. — " La Fomarina " . 248, 254
11 24 — Francia. — Portrait of Evangelista Scappi . . 238
1125 — FRANaABiGio. — The Madonna of the Well . . 251
1 1 26 — Fra Bartolommeo. — The Prophet Isaiah . . 250
11 27 — School of Raphael. — Youthful Saijit John in the
Desert 248, 254
1 1 28 — School of Van Dyck. — Portrait of the Emperor
Charles V 266
1129 — Raphael. — The Madonna of the Goldfinch . . 252
1130 — Fra Bartolommeo. — The Prophet Job . . . 250
1 131 — Raphael. — Portrait of Pope Julius II . . . 253
1 132 — School OF Correggio. — The Head of John the
Baptist 263
1133 — Annibale Carracci. — A Bacchante .... 264
1 134 — Correggio. — Madonna Adoriilg the Child . 263
1135 — LuiNi. — Salome with the Head of John the Baptist 259
1 136 — Paolo Veronese. — Madonna and Child with Saints 261
1137 — GuERCiNO. — Endjfmion Sleeping .... 249, 265
1138 — Lucas Cranach the Elder. — Eve .
1140 — Rubens. — Hercules between Vice and Virtue
1141 — DuRER. — The Adoration of the Magi
1142 — Lucas Cranach the .Elder. — Adam
266
26s
267
266
Tlbe Umportant Morfts ot art 343
NO. PAGE
1 143 — Lucas van Leyden. — The Man of Sorrows . z66
IIS3 — Antonio Pollaiuolo. — Scenes from the Story of
Hercules 223
189
246
187
IIS4 — BoTTlCEm. — Portrait of Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici
iiSS — Bronzing. — Portrait o£ Garzia de' Medici .
1156 — Botticelli. — Judith with the Head of Holofemes .
1158 — Botticelli. — The Discovery of the Body of Holo-
fernes 189
1160 — Lorenzo DI Credi. — The Annunciation . . . 210
1162 — Fra Angelico. — The Naming of the Baptist . 220
1163 — Lorenzo DI Credi. — Portrait of Verrocchio . . 226
1164 — Bronzino. — Portrait of Maria de' Medici . . . 246
1167 — Masaccio. — Portrait of an Old Man . . 220
1168 — Lorenzo di Credi. — The Virgin and Evangelist . 227
1169 — Andrea del Sarto. — Portrait of a Youth 245
11 78 — Fra Angelico. — The Marriage of the Virgin . 220
11 79 — Botticelli. — Saint Augustine 186
1182 ^- Botticelli. — Calumny 197
1184 — Fra Angelico. — The Death of the Virgin 220
1 198 — PoNTORMO. — -Marriage Plate with the Birth of the
Baptist 246
1239 — Michelangelo. — The Doni Madonna . . 216
1249 — GraNacci. — Joseph Conducted to Prison . . 169
1252 — Leonardo da Vinci. ^ The Adoration of the Magi
206, 22s
1254 — ANDitEA del Sarto. — Saint James and Two Chil-
dren 245
22s
229
1257 — FiLippiNO LiPPi. — The Adoration of the Magi
1259 — Albektinelli. — The Visitation ....
126s — Fra Bartolommeo. — Madonna Enthroned with
Saint Anne and Various Saints
1266 — BkoNZiNO. — Portrait of a Sculptor .
1267 bis Botticelli. — The Madonna of the Magnificat
1268 — !^iiLiPPiN0 Lippo. — Madonna Crowned by Angels
1269 — Giorgio Vasaei. — Portrait of Lorenzo il Magnifico 246
1271 — Bronzino. — Christ in Limbo 246
1272 — Bronzing. — Portrait of Ferdinando de' Medici . 246
1273 — Bronzing. — Portrait of Maria de' Medici . 246
127s — RiDOLro Ghirlandajo. — A Miracle of San Zanobi 239
1277 — RiDOLro Ghirlandajo. — The Burial of San Zanobi 239
1279 — Sgdoma. — Saint Sebastian 237
1280 — Granacci. — The Virgin Giving Her Girdle to Saint
Thomas 234
1282 — Granacci. — Joseph Presenting His Father and
Brothers to Pharaoh 169
1286 — Botticelli. — The Adoration of the Magi . . 190
1288 — School of Verrocchio. — The Annunciation . 204
1289 — Botticelli. — The Madonna of the Pomegranate . 192
1290 — Fra Angelico. — The Coronation of the Virgin 179, 220
233
246
192
22s
344 tCbe important Morfts ot art
NO. PAGE
i2gi — SiGNOEELLi. — The Holy Family 212
1294 — Fra Angelico. — Predella to Number 17 . . . i'7g
129s — DoMENico Ghtriandajo. — The Adoration of the
Magi 213
1297 — DoMENico Ghiklandajo. — Madomia Enthroned . 214
1298 — SiGNORELLi. — Predella with the Nativity . . 212
1299 — Botticelli. — Fortitude 185
1300 — Piero della Francesca. — Portraits of Federigo di
Montefeltro and His Wife Battista Sforza . . 221
1301 — Antonio Pollaiuolo. — Saint Eustace, Saint James
and Saint Vincent 211
1303 — BoincELLi. — Madonna and Child Enthroned . 186
1305 — DoMENico Veneziano. — Madonna and Saints . 201
1306 — PiEEO Pollaiuolo. — Prudence 185
1307 — Fka Filippo Lippi. — The Virgin Adoring the Child 209
1309 — Don Lorenzo Monaco. — The Coronation of the
Virgin .174
13 10 — Gentile da Fabeiano. — Four Panels from a Polyp-
tych 180
13 1 1 — Lorenzo di Credi. — Noli me Tangere . . . 227
1312 — Piero di Cosimo. — Perseus Liberating Andromeda 228
1313 — Lorenzo di Credi. — Christ and the Samaritan . 227
1314 — Lorenzo di Credi. — The Annunciation . . . 227
1316 — Botticelli. — The Annunciation 198
1524 — Titian. — Mater Dolorosa 281
152s — Hugo van dee Goes. — The Altar-piece of the
Portinari Family 299
1540 — School of Titian. — Portrait of Sixtus V . . 281
IS44 — Caporali. — Madonna and Angels .... 183
IS47 — Perugino and Signoeelli. — The Crucifixion . 213
1549 — FiLippiNO Lippi (?). — Madonna Adoring the Child 210
'^SSS — Giovanni da San Giovanni. — The Marriage ■
Night .... 292
1556 — Giovanni da San Giovanni. — Venus Combing the
Head of Cupid 292
1557 — CosiMO TuRO. — San Domenico 289
1562 — Jacopo Bellini. — Madonna and Child . . .270
1563 — Melozzo da Foeli. — The Angel of the Annun-
ciation 224
1568 — Bartolommeo Vivaeini. — Saint Louis of Toulouse 270
1569 — Cariani. — The Holy Family 282
3424 — Sustermans. — Portrait of Vittoria della Rovere . 303
3426 — Sustermans. — Portrait of Ferdinando H . . 305
3436 — Botticelli. — The Adoration of the Magi . . 199
3447 — Boltrafpio. — Head of a Youth .... 290
34S2 — Lorenzo di Credi. — Venus 201
3458 — Sebastiano del Piombo. — " L'Uomo Ammalato " 254
3462 — Angelica Kauffmann. — Portrait of King Stanis-
las of Poland 293
XCbe important Morl?B of Hrt 345
Collection of Portraits of the Artists Painted by Themselves
NO. PAGE
224 — Lucas Cranach the Elder 307
228 — Rubens 307
262 — Carlo Doici 308
286 — Filippino Lippi 308
288 — Raphael 308
384 bis Titian 308
434 — Durer 308
540 — Sir Joshua Reynolds 308
S49 — Madame Lebrun 308
585 — Watts 308
588 — Millais . 308
589 — Puvis de Chavannes 308
600 — Lord Leighton . . . . . . . . . 308
682 — Corot 308
722 — Alma-Tadema 308
752 — Romuey 308
1176 — Andrea del Sarto 308
Cabinet of Miniatures and Pastels 306
Sculpture
Fragments of the Ara Pads of Augustus . . .317
Varied Replica of the Laocoon Group . . . .316
Two Molossian Dogs 313
Rearing Horse 313
Round Altar 315
16 — Quadrangular Trophy Pillar 313
17 — Quadrangular Trophy Pillar 313
19 — Wild Boar 313
35 — Seated Agrippina 315
36 — Roman Matron 315
38 — Hercules Slaying the Centaur Nessos .... 314
39 — Sarcophagus 314
43 — ^ Julius Caesar 314
46 — Livia 314
47 — Augustus 314
48 — -Marcus Agrippa 314
59 — ^ Athlete with a Vase 314
60 — -Youthful Brittanicus 314
68 — Sarcophagus 314
77 — Otho 31S
79 — Julia 31S
82 — Ariadne 315
85 — Vespasian 315
88 — Ganymede with the Eagle 315
106 — Mercury 315
113 — Venus 315
346 Zbc Important Morhs of Hrt
NO. '
iig — Apollo
138 — Boy Extracting a Thorn from His Foot
155 — Marsyas ......
156 — Marsyas
236 — Altar to the Lares of Augustus
241 — Niobe and Her Yoimgest Daughter
24a — Trophos .
243 — Apollo
244 — A Dying Niobide
24s — Narcissus
248^ A Young Niobide
249 — Muse
251 — • Psyche .
253 — A Young Niobide
262 — Bacchus and Ampelus
264 — Priestess .
26s — Venus Genetrix .
266 — Venus Arania
306 — Hermaphrodite
318 — Giant's Head
342 — The Venus de' Medici
343 — The Wrestlers
344 — Dancing Satyr
345 — ApoUino .
346 — The Knife-grinder
Artistic Jewels
PAGE
31S
31S
31S
31S
316
318
318
318
318
318
318
318
318
318
316
316
316
316
316
316
3"
312
313
312
312. 31S
. 318
NATIONAL MUSEUM IN THE BARGELLO
Giotto. — Portrait of Dante 326
Sculpture
12 — Ghiberti. — The Sacrifice of Abraham (Competitive
Panel) 326
13 — Brunelleschi. — The Sacrifice of Abraham (Competi-
tive Panel) 326
22 — Verrocchio. — David 327
DoNATELLO. — Saint George 324
DoNATELLO. — MaKocco 326
56 — DONATELLO. — David 32s
57 — DoNATELLO. — David with the Head of Goliath . . 325
61 — DoNATELLO. — Saint John the Baptist .... 325
63 — DoNATELLO. — Youthful Saint John the Baptist . . 325
82 — Giovanni da Bologna. — Flying Mercury . . . 327
III— Michelangelo. — Bust of Brutus 323
Ube irinportant Morfts of Hrt 347
HO. PAGE
Benedetto da Rovezzano. — Reliefs from Monument
to San Giovanni Gualberto 322
112 — Benedetto da Rovezzano. — Borgherini Chimney-
piece 322
Michelangelo. — Dying Adonis 322
Michelangelo. — Victory ,322
123 — Michelangelo. — Madonna and Child (Relief) . .323
124 — Michelangelo. — Mask of a Faun .... 323
1 28 — Michelangelo. — Drunken Bacchus .... 323
Collection of Weapons and Implements of War . . 321
CATHEDRAL MUSEUM
Scidpkire
Donatello. — Cantoria 329
Luca della Robbia. — Cantoria 339
Xi0t of Hrtists fIDentioneb in tbe BooFi
witb IReferences to tbeir "OHorfts
Note: — The references in this list are mostly by the catalogue
number of the work. Unnumbered references are indicated by an
asterisk (*). Page numbers are found in the list of works.
GRECO - BYZANTINE SCHOOL OF THE TENTH CENTURY
Uffizi: I
ITALO-BYZANTINE SCHOOL OF THE ELEVENTH];CEN-
TURY
Bigallo: *; Church of Santa Trinitjl: *
ITALO-BYZANTINE SCHOOL OF THE TWELFTH CEN-
TURY
UfiSzi: 2, 3
ITALO - BYZANTINE SCHOOL OF THE THIRTEENTH CEN-
TURY
Academy: gg, loo; Uffizi: 4
FLORENTINE SCHOOL OF THE FOURTEENTH CENTURY
San Marco: *; Uffizi: 7, 10, 20
FLEMISH SCHOOL OF THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY
Uffizi: 906
FLEMISH SCHOOL OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY
Uffizi: 731
ALBERTINELLI. — Mamotto Albertinelli, Florentine Painter
(1474-1515)
Uffizi: 1259
ALFANI. — Oeazio Alfani, Umbrian Painter (isio?-i583)
Uffizi : 1 1 10
ALLEGRI, see CORREGGIO
ALLORI, see BRONZING
ALMA - TADEMA. — Sir Laurence Alma - Tadema, English
Painter (1836-1912)
Uffizi Portraits: 722
349
3SO Xist of Hrtfsts /lDentfotte5
AMBROGIO DE PREDIS, see PREDIS
ANDREA DEL SARTO, see SARTO
ANGELICO. — Gdido di Pietro da Mugello, Frate Giovanki
DA Feesole, called Fra Angelico, Florentine Painter (1387-
i4SS)
Academy: 166, 266; San Marco: Numerous Frescoes; Uffizi:
17, 1162, 1178, 1184, 1290, 1294
BALDOVINETTI. — Alesso Baldovinetti, Florentine Painter
(1427-1499) ^,^ . , ,
Academy: isg, 233; Uflizi: SO) 00
BANCO, see MASO DI BANCO
BARBARELLI, see GIORGIONE
BARBIERI, see GUERCINO
BAROCCIO. — Federigo Baroccio da Urbino, Eclectic Painter
(1528-1612)
Uffizi: 169, 1 1 19
BARTOLOMMEO. — Bartolommeo di Paolo di Jacopo del
Fattorino, called Fra Bartolommeo, Florentine Painter (1475-
1517)
Academy: 97, 172; TJffizi: 71, 1126, 1130
BASSANO. — Jacopo da Pokte da Bassano, Venetian Painter
(1510-1592)
Uffizi: 595, 610
BAZZI, see SODOMA
BELLINI. — Giovanni Bellini, Venetian Painter (i427?-i5i6)
Uffizi: 631
BELLINI. — Jacopo Bellini, Venetian Painter (i4oo?-i47o)
Uffizi: 1562
BERLIN GHIERI. — Bonaventitra Berunghieri, Tuscan Painter
(active 1235-1244)
Academy: loi
BIGIO, see FRANCIABIGIO
BIGORDI, see GHIRLANDAJO
BISSOLO. — Pier Francesco Bissolo, Venetian Painter (1464-
1530?)
Uffizi: 584
BLES. — Hendrik Bles, called Civetta, Flemish Painter (1480?-
1550?)
Uffizi: 698
BOLOGNA. — Giovanni da Bologna, Flemish-Florentine Sculp-
tor (1530-1608) I
Bargello: 82
BOLTRAFFIO. — Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, Lombard
Painter (1467-1516)
Uffizi: 3447
BONIFAZIO. — Bonbfazio dei Pitati, called Bonifazio Vero-
nese, Venetian Painter (1487-1540)
Uffizi: 628
BONVICINO, see MORETTO
Xist ot HrUsts /iDentfoneb 35^
BORDONE. — Paris Bordone, Venetian Painter (1500-1571)
Uffizi: 577, 607
BOTTICELLI. — Alessandro di Mariano Filipepi, called
Botticelli, Florentine Painter (1446^1510)
Academy: 73, 74, 80, 85, 157, 158, loi, 162; Uffizi: 39, 1154,
1156, 1158, 1179, 1182, 1267 *w, 1286, 1289, 1299, 1303, 1316,
BoAfcELLl SCHOOL
Uffizi: 66, 67, 68
BOTTICINI. — Francesco Bottigini, Florentine Painter (1446-
1498)
Academy: 84, 154
BRONZING. — Angelo Allori, called Bronzing, Florentine
Painter (1502-1572)
Uffizi: 154, 159, 167, 172, 198, 115s, 1164, 1266, 1271, 1272, 1273
BRUEGHEL. — Peter Brueghel, the Elder, of Breda, Flemish
Painter (i53o?-i569)
Uffizi: 892, 928
BRUNELLESCHI. — Filippo Brtjnelleschi, Florentine Architect
and Sculptor (1379-1446)
Bargello: 13
BUONAROTTI, see MICHELANGELO
CALIARI, see CARLETTO, and VERONESE
CAPANNA. — Puccio Capanna, Florentine Painter (i3i9?-^i36o?)
Uffizi: 6
CAPORALI. — Bartolommeo Caporali, Umbrian Painter (active
about 1472-1499)
Uffizi: 1544
CAPPONI, see GARBO
CARACCI, see CARRACCI
CARIANI. — Giovanni Busi Cariani, Venetian Painter (1485?-
1541?)
Uffizi: 1569
CARLETTO. — Carlo Caliari, called Carletto, Venetian
Painter (1572-1596)
Uffizi: 604
CAROTTO. — Giovanni Francesco Caeotto, Veronese Painter
(1470-1546)
Uffizi: 571, 1121
CARPACCIO. — ViTTOHE Carpaccio, Venetian Painter (1450?-
! 1525?)
Uffizi; 583 tns
CARRACCI. — Annibale Carracci, Bolognese Painter (1560-
1609)
Uffizi: 1133
CARRUCCI, see PONTORMO
CASTAGNO. — Andrea di Bartolommeo di Simone, called
Andrea del Castagno, Florentine Painter (1390-1457)
, UfSzi: 12
3S2 Xtst ot BrttBts /lDentione&
CATENA. — ViNCENzo ra Biagio, called Catena, Venetian
Painter (i47o?-i53i?)
Uffizi: 583
CHAVANNES. — Piekre-Cecile Puvis de Chavannes, French
Painter (i824-i8g8)
Uf&zi Portraits: 589
CIMA. — Giovanni Battista da Conegliano, called Cima da
CoNEGLiANO, Venetian Painter (1459-1517)
Ufl&zi: 584 bis
CIMABUE. — Giovanni Cimabue, Florentine Painter (1240-
1302?)
Academy: 102; Chiircli of Santa Maria Novella: *
CIONE, see ORCAGNA
CIONI, see VERROCCHIO
CIVETTA, see BLES
CLAUDE. — Claude Gellee, called Claude de Lorraine,
French Painter (1600-1682)
Uffizi: 848
CLEEF. — JoosT van Cleef, Dutch Painter (iso4?-i54o)
Uffizi: 762
CONEGLLANO, see CIMA
COROT. — Jean Baptiste Camille Corot, French Painter (1796-
187s)
Uffizi Portraits: 682
CORREGGIO. — Antonio Allegri da Coreeggio, Parman Painter
(1494-1534)
Uffizi: 1002, 1118, 1134
CORREGGIO SCHOOL
Uffizi: 113 2
COSIMO, see PIERO DI COSIMO
CRANACH. — Lucas Ceanach, the Elder, German Painter
(1472-1553)
Uffizi: 822, 83S, 845, 847, 1138, 1142; Uffizi Portraits: 224
CREDI. — Lorenzo di Andrea di Oderigo di Credi, Florentine
Painter (i4S9-iS37)
Academy: 92; Uffizi: 1160, 1163 1168, 1311, 1313, 1314, 3452
CRISTUS. — Peteus Ceistus, Dutcl- Painter (i4io?-i473)
Uffizi: 749
DANIELE DA VOLTERRA, see VOLTERRA
DAVID. — Geeaed David, Dutch Painter (i440?-i523)
Uffizi: 708, 846
DENNER. — Balthasar Denner, German Painter (1685-1749)
Uffizi: 764
DOLCI. — Carlo Dolq, Florentine Painter (1616-1686)
Uffizi Portraits: 262
DOMENICHINO. — Domenico Zampieei, called Domenichino,
Bolognese Painter (1581-1641)
Uffizi: 1 109
DOMENICO VENEZIANO, see VENEZIANO
Xtst of Hrttsts /lDentlone5 353
DONATELLO. — Donato di Niccolo di Betto Bardi, called
DoNATELLO, Florentine Painter and Sculptor (1386-1466)
Bargello: 56, 57, 61, 63, * *; Cathedral Museum: *
DOU. — Gerard Dou, Dutch Painter (1613-1675)
.. Uffizi: 926
DURER. — Albrecht DiisER, German Painter (1471-1528)
Uffizi: 91, 766, 768, 777, 1141; Uffizi Portraits: 434
DYCK, see VAN DYCK
FABRIANO. — Gentile di Niccolo di Giovanni Massi da Fa-
BEIANO, Umbrian Painter (i36s?-i428?)
Academy: 165; Uffizi: 13 10
FILIPEPI, see BOTTICELLI
FILIPPINO LIPPO, see LIPPI
FORLI. — Marco Melozzo degli Ambeosi da Foeli, called
Melozzo da FoEii, Umbrian-Florentine Painter (1438-1494)
Uffizi: 1563
FRA ANGELICO, see ANGELICO
FRA BARTOLOMMEO, see BARTOLOMMEO
FRA FILIPPO LIPPI, see LIPPI
FRANCESCA. — • Pieteo di Benedetto dei Franceschi, called
Piero della Francesca, Umbrian-Florentine Painter (1416-
1492)
Uffizi: 1300
FRANCIA. ^-'Francesco di Marco di Giacomo Raibolini, called
II Francia, Bolognese Painter (1450-1517)
Uffizi: 1124
FRANCIABIGIO. — Francesco di Ceistopano Bigi, called
Franciabigio, Florentine Painter (1482-1525)
Uffizi: 1125
FROMENT. — Nicolas Froment of Uzes, French Painter (active
1461)
Uffizi: 744
GADDI. — Taddeo di Gaddo Gaddi, Florentine Painter (1300?-
1366?)
Academy: 104, 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, no, iii, 112, 113, 114,
IIS, ii7i 118, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126
GARBO. — Raffaelino di Bartolommeo di Giovanni di Nic-
colo Capponi, called Rafeaelino de Garbo, Florentine Painter
(1466-1524)
Uffizi: 22
GELL:^E, see CLAUDE
GENTILE DA FABRIANO, see FABRIANO
GHERARDO DELLE NOTTI, see HONTHORST
GHIBERTI. — Lorenzo di Cione Ghiberti, Florentine Sculptor
(1378-1455)
Bargello: 12
GHIRLANDAJO. — Domenico di Tommaso Cueradi di Doefo
BiGORDi, called Ghirlandajo, Florentine Painter (1449-1494)
Academy: 195; Uffizi: 1295, 1297
354 Xi8t ot Zltti0t0 /l^entione^
GHIRLANDAJO. — Ridolfo di Domenico Bigokdi, called Rl-
DOLro GmaLANDAjo, Florentine Painter (1483-1561)
Uffizi: 1275, 1277
GIORGIONE. — GioKGio Barbarelli da Castelfranco, called
GiORGiONE, Venetian Painter (i477?-jsio)
Uffizi: 621, 622, 630
GIOTTINO. — ToMMASo di Maestro SiErANO, called Giottino,
Florentine Painter (Fourteenth Century)
Uffizi: 27
GIOTTO. — Giotto di Bondone, Florentine Painter (1266-
1337)
Academy: 103; Bargello:*
GIOTTO SCHOOL
Uffizi: 12
GIOVANNI DA BOLOGNA, see BOLOGNA
GIOVANNI DA SAN GIOVANNI, see SAN GIOVANNI
GOES. — Hugo van der Goes, Flemish Painter (143s?-
1482)
Uffizi: 1523
GUERCINO. — Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, called Gtjer-
CINO, Bolognese Painter (1591-1666)
Uffizi: 1114, 1137
GRANACCI. — Francesco Granacci, Florentine Painter (1477-
1543)
Uffizi: 1249,1280,1282
GUIDO DA SIENA, see SIENA
HOLBEIN. ^- Hans Holbein the Younger of Augsburg, Ger-
man Painter (1497-1543)
Uffizi: 76s
HONTHORST. — Gerard van Honthorst, called Gherardo
delle Notti, Dutch Painter (1590-1656)
Uffizi : 190
JACOBSZ., see LEYDEN
KAUFFMANN. — Angelica Kauffmann of Bregenz, German
Painter (i 741-1807)
Uffizi: 3462
KRANACH, see CRANACH
KULMBACH. — Hans Suess of Kulmbach, German Painter
(i47S?-i522)
Uffizi: 713, 713 bis, 724, 729, 740, 740 his, 748
LE BRUN. — Marie Louise Elisabeth Vig£e Le Brxjn, French
Painter (1755-1842)
Uffizi Portraits: 549
LEIGHTON. '— Frederic, Lord Leighton, English Painter (1830-
1896)
Uffizi Portraits: 600
LELY. — Pietee Van der Faes, called Sir Peter Lelv, Flemish
Painter (1618-1680)
Uffizi: 135
Xist ot Hrtfsts /lDcntione5 355
LEONARDO DA VINCI, see VINCI
LEYDEN. — Lucas Jacobsz., called Lucas van Leyden, Dutch
Painter (1494-1S33)
UflSzi: 1 143
LIPPI. — FiLIPPO DI TOMMASO LiPPI, CALLED FEA FiLIPPO LiPPI,
Florentine Painter (1406-1469)
Academy: sSi 62, 79, 86; Uffizi: 1307
LIPPI. — FiLIPPO DI FiLIPPO Lippi, CALLED FiLippiNO Lippi, Flor-
entine Painter (1457-1504)
Academy: 98; Uffizi: 1257, 1268, 1549; Uffizi Portraits:
286
LORENZETTI. — Ambrogio di Lorenzo, called Ambrogio Lo-
RENZETTi, Sienese Painter (i300?-i348)
Academy: 134
LORENZETTI. — Pietro di Lorenzo, called Pietro Loren-
zETTi, Sienese Painter (i28o?-i348)
Uffizi: IS, 16
LORENZO DI BICCI. — Florentine Painter (1350-1427)
Uffiai: 45
LORENZO MONACO. — Don Lorenzo, called II Monaco, Flor-
entine-Sienese Painter (i37o?-i425?)
Uffizi: 8, 39, 40, 41, 1309
LUCA DELLA ROBBLA, see ROBBIA
LUINI. — Bernardino Luini, Lombard Painter (1470?-
IS33?)
Uffizi: 113s
MANOZZI, see SAN GIOVANNI
MANTEGNA. — Andrea di Ser Biagio, called Mantegna,
Paduan Painter (1431-1506)
Uffizi: 1025, I III
MARTINI. — SiMONE Martini, Sienese Painter (i 283-1344)
Uffizi: 23
MASACCIO. — ToMMAso di Ser Giovanni di Simone Guidi
DELLA ScHEGGiA, CALLED Masaccio, Florentine Painter
(1401-1428)
Academy: 70; Uffizi: 1167
MASO di BANCO. — Florentine Painter (i3io?-i352?)
Uffizi: 27 (?)
MATSYS. — QuENTiN Matsys, Flemish Painter (i46o?-i53o)
Uffizi: 237
MELOZZO DA FORLI, see FORLI
MEMLING. — Hans Memling, Flemish Painter (i43o?-i494)
Uffizi: 703, 769, 778, 780, 801, 801 bis
MEMMI. — Lippo DI Memmo di Filipuccio, called Lippo Memmi,
Sienese Painter (i29o?-i357)
Uffizi: 23
METSU. — Gabriel Metsu, Dutch Painter (1630-1667)
Uffizi: 918, 972
METSYS, see MATSYS
3s6 OLtst Of Htttsts /IDentioneS
MICHELANGELO. — Michelangelo di Ludovico di Leonaedo
BuoNAROTTi SiMONi, Florentine Architect, Sculptor and Painter
(1475-1564)
Academy Sculpture: *; Uffizi: 1239; Bargello: in, 123, 124,
128, * *
MIERIS. — Franz van Mieeis, the Elder, Dutch Painter (1635-
1681)
Uffizi: 854, 890, 941
MILLAIS. — John Everett Millais, English Painter (1829-
1896)
Uffizi Portraits: 588
MONACO, see LORENZO MONACO
MORONI. — Giovanni Battista Moroni, Venetian Painter
(iS2o?-is78)
Uffizi: 582, 586, 629, 642
NEGRETTI, see PALMA VECCHIO
ORCAGNA. — Andrea di Cione, called l'Arcagnolo, or Or-
cagna, Florentine Painter (i3o8?-i368)
Uffizi: 14
PALMA VECCHIO. — Jacopo di Antonio Negeetti, called
Palma il Vecchio, Venetian Painter (1480-1528)
Uffizi: 619, 623
PALMA VECCHIO SCHOOL
Uffizi: 650
PAOLO DI DONO, see UCCELLO
PAOLO VERONESE, see VERONESE
PARMIGIANINO. — Francesco Mazzuoli da Parma, called II
Parmigianino, Ferrarese-Florentine Painter (1503-1540)
Uffizi: 1006
PERUGINO. — Pietro Vannucci da Perugia, called Perugino,
Umbrian Painter (1446-1523)
Academy: 53, 56, 57, 78,98, 241, 242; Uffizi: 287, 1122, 1547
PESELLINO. — Francesco di Stefano, called Pesellino, Flor-
entine Painter (1422-1457)
Academy: 72
PIERO DELLA FRANCESCA, see FRANCESCA
PIERO DI COSIMO. — PiERO di Lorenzo, called Piero d»
CosiMO, Florentine Painter (1462-1521)
Uffizi: 81, 83, 1312
PIOMBO, see SEBASTIANO DEL PIOMBO
POLLAIUOLO. — Antonio d'Jacopo d' Antonio Benci, called
Antonio del Pollaiuolo, Florentine Painter (1429-1498)
Uffizi: 1153, 1301
POLLAIUOLO. — Piero d'Jacopo d'Antonio Benci, called Piero
DEL Pollaiuolo, Florentine Painter (1443-1496)
Uffizi: 30, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 1306
PONTORMO. — Jacopo Carrucci da Pontoemo, Florentine
Painter (1494-1557)
Uffizi: 1198
Xist ot Hctists /iDentioneO 357
PREDIS. — Ambrogio de Predis, Lombard Painter (i4So?-iS2o?)
U£&zi: 30 bis
PUVIS DE CHAVANNES, see CHAVANNES
RAFFAELINO DEL GARBO, see GARBO
RAPHAEL. — Ratfaello Sanzio, Umbrian-Florentine-Roman
Painter (1483-1520)
Uffizi: 1120, 1127, ii2g, 1131; Uffizi Portraits: 288
REYNOLDS. — Sir Joshua Reynolds, English Painter (1723-
1792)
UflSzi Portraits: 540
RIBERA, see SPAGNOLETTO
ROBBIA. — LucA Di SiMONE Di Marco della Robbia, Florentine
Sculptor (1400-1482)
Cathedral Museum: *
ROBUSTI, see TINTORETTO
ROMNEY. — George Romney, English Painter (i 734-1802)
Uffizi Portraits: 752
ROSSELLI. — CosiMO di Lorenzo di Filippo Rosselli, Florentine
Painter (1439-1507)
Academy: 52; Uffizi: 65, 65 (Santa Maria Nuova)
ROVEZZANO. — Benedetto da Rovezzano, Florentine Sculptor
(1476-1556)
Bargello: 112, *
RUBENS. — Peter Paul Rubens, Flemish Painter (1577-1640)
Uffizi: 147, 180, 197, 1140; Uffizi Portraits: 228
RUBENS SCHOOL
Uffizi: 210
SALVI, see SASSOFERRATO
SAN GIOVANNI. — Giovanni Manozzi da San Giovanni, Flor-
entine Painter (1590-1636)
Uffizi: 137, 1555, 1556
SARTO. — Andrea d'Agnolo di Francesco di Luca di Paolo del
MiGLioRE, CALLED ANDREA DEL Sarto, Florentine Painter (1486-
Academy: 61, 76, 77; Uffizi: 93, 188, 280, ni2, 1254; Uffizi
Portraits: 1176
SASSOFERRATO. — Giovanni Battista Salvi da Sassofeerato,
Roman Painter (1605-1685)
Uffizi: igi
SAVOLDO. — Giovanni Girolamo Savoldo, Brescian Painter
(i48o?-i55o?)
Uffizi: 64s
SEBASTIANO DEL PIOMBO. — Sebastiano di Francesco Lu-
ciANi, called Fra Sebastiano del Piombo, Venetian-Roman
Painter (1485-1547)
Uffizi: 592, 1123, 3458
SIGNORELLI. — Luca d'Egidio di Ventura Signoeelli, Floren-
•tine-Umbrian Painter (1441-1524)
Academy: 65, 164; Uffizi: 74, 1291, 1298, 1547
353 Xist Of Htttstd /Dentioned
SIENA. TTT Gumo da Siena, Sienese Painter (i24o?-ri3oo?)
Uffizi: s
SODOMA. — Giovanni Antonio de' Bazzi, called II Sodoma,
Sienese-Lombard Painter (i477?-iS49)
Uffizi: 1279
SOGLIANI. — Giovanni Antonio Sogliani, Florentine Painter
(1492-1544)
San Marco: '''
SNYDERS. — Franz Snyders, Flemish Painter (1579-1657)
Uffizi: 220
SPAGNOLETTO. — Jusepe de Ribeea, called II Spagnoletto,
Spanish-Neapolitan Painter (1588-1656)
Uffizi: 1104
SUESS, see KULMBACH
SUSTERMANS. — Justus Sustermans, Flemish Painter (1597-
1681)
Uffizi: 163, 763, 3424, 3426
TINTORETTO. — Jacopo Robush, called II Tintoeeito, Vene-
tian Painter (1518-1594)
Uffizi: 601, 638
TITIAN. — TiziANO Vecelli, Venetian Painter (1477^1576)
Uffizi: 599, 605, 614, 626, 633, 648, 1108, 1116, 1117, 1524;
Uffizi Portraits : 384 bii
TITIAN SCHOOL
Uffizi: 576, 590, 609, 618, 625, 1540
TURA. — CosiMO TuRA, Ferrarese Painter (1432-1495)
Uffizi: 1557
UCCELLO. — Paolo di Dono, called Uccello, Florentine Painter
(1397-1475)
Uffizi: 52
VAN CLEEF, see CLEEF
VAN DER FAES, see LELY
VAN DER GOES, see GOES
VAN DER WEYDEN, see WEYDEN
VAN DyCK. — Anthonis Van Dyck, Flemish Painter (1599-
1641)
Uffizi: 1115
VAN DYCK SCHOOL
Uffizi: II 28
VAN HONTHORST, see HONTHORST
VAN MIERIS, see MIERIS
VANNUCCI, see PERUGINO
VASARI. — Giorgio Vasari, Florentine Architect and Painter
(1511-1574)
Uffizi: 1269
VECELLI, see TITIAN
VENEZIANO. — DoMENico di Bartolommeo da Venezio, called
Domenico Veneziano, Florentine Painter (i4oo?-i46i)
Uffizi: 1305 ,
Xist of Hrtfsts /Kentfoneo 359
VERONESE. — Paolo Caliaki, called Paolo Veronese, Vene-
tian Painter (1528-1588)
Uffizi: 579, 589, 596, 603, 1136
VERROCCHIO. — Andrea di Domenico di Michele di Francesco
de' Cioni, called Andrea del Verrocchio, Florentine Sculptor
and Painter (1435-1488)
Academy: 71; Bargello: 22
VERROCCHIO SCHOOL
Academy: 84; Uffizi: 1288
VINCI. — Leonardo di Ser Piero d' Antonio di Ser Piero di Ser
Gdido da Vinci, Florentine-Lombard Painter (1452-1519)
Uffizi: 1252
VIVARINI. — Bartolommeo Vivarini, Venetian Painter (1425?-
1499?)
Uffizi: 1568
VOLTERRA. — Daniele Ricciarelli da Volterra, called II
Bragghetone, Roman Painter (1509-1566)
Uffizi: 1 107
WATTEAU. — Antoine Waiteau, French Painter <i684-i72i)
Uffizi: 671
WATTS. — George Frederick Watts, English Painter (181 7-
1904)
Uffizi Portraits: 585
WEYDEN. — Roger van der Weyden, Flemish Painter (1399?-
1464)
Uffizi: 795
ZAMPIERI, see DOMENICHINO
fnbex
Academy, History of, 13.
Adam, 211, 266.
Adoration of the Magi, 72^
Albigenses, 129.
Alessandri, 153.
Alessandro de' Medici, 146.
Altar-piece, 35.
Alvema, 55.
Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici,
149.
Annunciation, 65.
Apelles, 196.
Arezzo, 116.
Aries, SS-
Arlotto, Parisli Priest, 292.
Arno, 223.
Assisi, 47, 52, S7.
Assumption of the Virgin, 121.
Augustinian Order, 129.
Augustus, 312, 317.
Azarias, 108.
Baldacchino, 96.
Balthasar, 74.
Bargello, History of, 320.
Battlements, Guelph and Ghib-
elline, 321.
Beatification, 68.
Benedict XI, 46.
Benedictine Order, 7, 60, 113.
Benvenuti, 153.
Bonfires of Vanities, 112.
Borgherini, 170.
Botti, 255.
Brancacci Frescoes, 79.
Browning, Robert, 83, 126, 242,
244.
361
Buontalenti, 147, 148, 155, 248,
Byron, 249.
Byzantine, 269.
Camaldolesan Order, 6, 60, 140,
176.
Canova, 153.
Carmelite Order, 139.
Casentino, 6, 23, 55, 94.
Caspar, 73. t ■
Catacombs of Saint Calixtus,
164.
Cenacolo, 135.
Charles V, 266.
Chaucer, 163.
Chiara Fancelli, 1 20.
Cintola, Legend of the Sacred,
.235.
Cistercian Order, 113, 140.
CittS, della Pieve, 118.
Clement V, 157.
Cleomenes, 311, 315.
Colleoni, 105.
Coronation of the Virgin, 84.
Cortona, 115.
Cosimo de' Medici the Elder, 80,
131, 136, 137, 14s, igo, 209.
Cosimo I, 146, 2SS-
Cosimo 11, 148, 2SS-
Cosimo ni, 149, 297, 302.
Crucifixes, Types of, 157, 158,
IS9-
Crusades, 49.
Dante, 13, 24, 39, 49, 55, 70, 96,
202, 232, 236.
Diocletian, 86, 238.
362
Itn&ei
Diptych, 36.
Distemper, 42.
Dominican Order, 12, 35, 57,
112, 129, 131, 137, 139, 140.
Doni, 216.
Eleanor of Toledo, 291;
Eliot, George, 141.
Elizabeth, 232.
Erasmus, 295.
Eve, 2n, 266.
Ezekiel, Vision of, 162.
Ferdinando I, 148, 291, 305.
Ferdinando II, 148, 305.
Ferdinando III, 151, 152-
Flaminius, 115.
Francesco I, 147, 155, 310.
Francesco Maria della Rovere,
259. 278.
Franciscan Order, 12, 35, 53, 54,
56, 57-
Frederick the Wise, 267.
Galileo, 305.
Gesso, 72.
Giovanni delle Bande Nere, 279.
Giovanni de' Medici, igo.
Giovanni Gastone, 149.
Giuliano de' Medici, 89, 191.
Goldsmith-Artists, 319.
Golgotha, 138.
Gonfalon, 237.
Gradino, 37/
Guido d'Arezzo, 10.
Halo, 69.
Hannibal, 115.
Harpies, 241.
Henry IV of France, 303.
Hermits of the Thebaid, 165.
Holofernes, 187.
Honorlus III, 129, 133.
Innocent III, 53.
Isabella d'Este, 2'jSis
Isaiah, 250.
James, Cardinal of Portugal,
211, 212.
Jesse, 75.
Joseph of Arimathea, 68, 123,
125-
Judas, 123, 142.
Judith, 187, 281.
Julius II, 2S3, 322.
Lavinia, 260.
Leopoldo de' Medici, Cardinal,
149, 307-
Leopoldo II, 151.
Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de'
Medici, 88.
Lorenzo the Magnificent, 89,
i3i> 137. 191. 193, 212, 223,
247, 319. 329-
Lucretius, 89.
Lucrezia Buti, 85, 98, 208, 209.
Lucrezia del Fede, 126, 241, 244,
24S, 290.
Luther, 295.
Magnificat, 193, 232.
Mandorla, 71.
Maria de' Medici, 303.
Marseilles, 31.
Martin V, 131.
Marzocco, 326.
Maxentius, 62.
Maximin, 31.
Melancthon, 295.
Melchior, 74.
Mercatanzia, 184, 201.
Michelozzo, 68.
Misery of Europe, 8.
Monastery of San Marco, His-
tory of, 131.
Montefeltro, 221.
More, Sir Thomas, 295.
Moses, Trial of the Infant, 275.,
Napoleon, 152, 251, 312.
Nasi, 252,
Nicholas V, 142.
Nicodemus, 68, 123.
Nimbus, 69.
Niobe Myth, 317.
Noli me Tangere, 30.
Nunc Dimittis, 58.
* ft I I t
iFn&ei
363
Parigi, 147.
Perugia, 116, iiS-
Perugian Academy, 257.
Piagnoni, 112.
Piero de' Medici the Gouty, jgo.
Pierfrancesco de' Medici, 225.
Pieta, 97.
Pietro Leopoldp I, 150, 257.
Politian, 89, 91,
Polyptych, 36.
Portinari, 13, 299.
Portiuncula, 54-
Prato, 208, 236.
Prajdteles, 313.
Predella, 37.
Puccinij 152.
Putti, 126, 218, 263.
Ricci, IS3-
Romola, 141.
Rood, 159.
Rudolph II, 267.
Sacramental Office, 135.
Saints in Art, 64.
Saints:
Albert of Vercelli, 139.
Ambrose, 84, 95.
Andrew, 176.
Anna, 78, 79, 234.
Ansano, 168.
Anthony Abbot, 63, 165, 222,
277, 299.
Anthony of Padua, 31, 55, 86,
87.
Antonino, 131, 136, 228.
Augustine, 87, 92, 93. 93. 97,
140, 186.
Barbara, 109, no.
Barnabas, 94, 234.
Bartholomew, 161.
Benedict, 100, 113, 120, 140,
144, 161, 169, 176, 177, 301.
Bernard of Clairvaux, 113,
140, 226.
Bernardo degli Uberti, 120,
125, 126.
Catherine of Alexandria, 45,
61, 64, 9S, 159, 228, 261,
272, 280, 281.
Catherine of Siena, 136, 143,
272.
Cecilia, 162,
Clara, 34.
Cosipio, §6, 87, 139, 144, 169,
222.
Damiano, 86, 87, 139, 169, 222.
Dominick, 12, 49, 69, 71, 115,
128, 129, 130, 134, 13s, 136,
139. 140, 143. i44> 222, 289-
Egidio, 299.
Eloy, 92, 93.
Eustace, 212.
Francis, 12, 26, 34, 49, 61, 69,
71, 86, 129, 140, 144, IS7,
202, 222, 229, 241.
Frediano, 87, 286.
Gabriel (Archfingel), 109, 167,
213, 276.
George, 181, 324,
Giles, 299.
Giobbe, 250, 273.
Giovanni Gualberto, i, 51, 69,
100, 120, I2S, 126, 140, 234,
322.
Giuliano, 222,
Giulietta, 168,
Giustina, 286.
Giusto, 214, 2 IS.
Ilario, 82.
James, 143, 212, 245.
Jerome, 82, 92, 93, 139, 166,
257,
Job, 250, 273.
John Baptist, gi, 8s, 9S, iq6,
no, 125, 126, 133, 161, 176,
179, 181, 202, 218, 220, 222,
226, 234, 241, 246, 2SP, 252,
2se, 277, 281.
John Evangelist, 68, 92, 93,
113, 123, 136, laS, 143, 158,
161, 162, 176, 2?i, 227, 23s.
Joseph, 75, 76, J79,
Laurence, 138, 144, 22?,
Lazarus, 29.
Longinus, 26.
Lorenzo, 138, 144, 222.
Louis of Toulouse, 270.
Lucia, 202.
Luke, 162.
364
fln&ci
Margaret, 228, 286, 300.
Mark, 138, 144, 162, 179.
Martha, 29, 297.
Mary Magdalen, 27, 45, 68,
82, 116, 123, 138, 181, 297,
298, 300, 326.
Mary Salome, 76.
Matthew, no, 162.
Michael (Archangel), 34, 69,
95, 109, 120, I2S, 126, 215,
23s, 236.
Nicholas of Ban, 180, 181,
202.
Paul, 69, 144, 159, 272, 294,
29S-
Peter, 143, 159, 176, 179, 228,
273, 274, 294, 29s.
Peter Martyr, 69, 133, 140,
144.
Philip, 69, 228, 293.
Procolo, 61, 63.
Raphael (Archangel), 108, 215.
Remigio, 169.
Reparata, 168, 234.
Romualdo, 6, 84, 140, 176.
Sebastian, 237, 250, 273.
Thaddeus, 161.
Thomas, 144, 235, 236, 299.
Thomas Aquinas, 135, 140,
144.
Victor, 226.
Vincent, 212.
Zenobio, 215, 226, 229, 234,
239-
Salome, 97, 259.
Salvestrini, 131.
Santa Conversazione, 281.
Sarah, 108.
Savonarola, 112, 131, 141, 144,
231.
Scapular, 130.
Secret of the Old Masters, 124.
Servite Order, 228.
Sforza, 224.
Siena, 58, 167.
Simonetta, 89, 192.
Sixtus II, 138.
Sixtus IV, 191, 281.
Solomon, 275.
Song of Solomon, 272.
Stigmata, Legend of, 55.
Symbols in Sacred Art:
Angel, 162.
Apple, 300.
Arrow, 238.
Ass, 75.
Bird, 104.
Cypress, 205, 215.
Dove, 178, 228.
Eagle, 162.
Flowers, 215.
Fruit, 2x5.
Garden, 199, 205, 210.
Lion, 162.
Orb, 178.
Ox, 75, 162.
Pelican, 158.
Pomegranate, 187, 192, 193.
Scorpion, 259.
Shell, 96.
Star, 178.
Tree of Life, 273.
Taylor, Bayard, 248, 265.
Te Deum, 95.
Tempera, 42.
Tiburtius, 164.
Tobias, 108.
Tondo, 36.
Trasimeno, Lake, 115.
Triptych, 36.
Tuscany, 25.
UflSzi Gallery, History of, 146.
Valencia, 128.
Valerian, 163.
Vallombrosa, 126.
Vallombrosan Order, 6, 57, 100,
140.
Vasari, 146.
Venetian Palaces, 285.
Venice, 269.
Vema, La, 55.
Vespucci, Amerigo, 101.
Vespucci, Marco 89.
Violante, 278.
Visitation, 232.
Vittoria della Rovere, 148, 261,
278.
Zacharias, 232.
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